Mr. Daniel Fahene Acquaye, CEO of Agri-Impact Group and a leading agribusiness expert, has urged African youth to take bold steps into agribusiness and agricultural technology (agritech) as a pathway to wealth creation, job opportunities, food security, and sustainable livelihoods across the continent.
He made this call while addressing the Africa Youth Conference 2025, organized by The Apostolic Church-Ghana at its Resource, Conference, and Retreat Centre in Frafraha, Accra. The conference, themed “Fired Up,” ran from August 25 to 31.
Highlighting Africa’s urgent employment challenge, Mr. Acquaye noted that between 10 and 12 million young people enter the labour market each year—about one million every month. “To picture this, think of the biggest sports stadium in your country,” he explained.
“Divide one million by its capacity, and you’ll know how many times that stadium would need to be filled to match the number of young people seeking work in just one month.”
Yet, despite these staggering figures, only about three million secure jobs in the formal sector annually, leaving the majority searching for opportunities.
According to him, agriculture and agribusiness hold the key. He stressed the untapped potential of agritech to drive transformation. “Across the world, people are using technology to transform farming through simple but powerful tools,” he said. “Take drones, for instance.
In Ghana, most of our drones are used for wedding and funeral photos. But drones are also designed for agriculture, applying fertilizers, improving yields, and making farming smarter. We must change the narrative and embrace technology for productivity.”
On the perception that agribusiness is too risky, Mr. Acquaye offered a striking comparison: “If people tell you agribusiness is risky, tell them they should try hunger. Which one is riskier?
To put a seed of maize in the soil and watch it grow, or to buy a ticket and fly to the UK? People fly across continents every day, but when it comes to planting a seed, we suddenly call it risky.”
He encouraged young people to build resilience and faith as they pursue opportunities in agribusiness. “There is no sector in this world without risk. And if there were no risk, we would not have overcomers.
So I want you to be overcomers of risk. Then we can give testimony to God and say, ‘Our Lord, our God, has done it for us.’”
His message resonated strongly with the youth in attendance, many of whom left inspired to see agribusiness not as a fallback option but as a strategic pathway to create jobs, fight hunger, and shape Africa’s economic future.
