3rd October 2025.
From September to October 2025, the Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA), in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation, through the Agogo Business Advisory Centre (BAC), implemented a key component under their flagship youth empowerment initiative — the Business in a Box (BizBox) Project. This particular component, known as Agriculture and Agribusiness to Entrepreneurship (AA2E’s), forms an essential part of the broader agenda to promote youth employment, stimulate innovation in the agricultural sector, and strengthen local economies through entrepreneurship.
The AA2E’s Component is designed to bridge the gap between traditional agriculture and modern agribusiness by equipping young people with the knowledge, skills, and tools necessary to transform agricultural activities into viable, profitable enterprises. It offers competency-based training delivered in collaboration with Farm Institutes, Agricultural Experts, and accredited Service Providers, ensuring that participants receive both practical field experience and strong foundational business education.
In addition to the technical sessions, participants are taken through mindset transformation and entrepreneurial development programs aimed at reshaping perceptions about agriculture—from being viewed as a subsistence occupation to a dynamic, income-generating business opportunity. The component also provides start-up kits to participants, enabling them to establish and operate their own agribusiness ventures. This support particularly targets youth-led agribusiness development, emphasizing sustainability, innovation, and community impact.
For the latest phase of the project, participants benefited from the Start Your Business (SYB) training — a globally recognized entrepreneurship development program jointly introduced by the Ghana Enterprises Agency and the Mastercard Foundation. The SYB training is part of the broader Start and Improve Your Business (SIYB) framework, which focuses on empowering Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) with essential business management and operational skills. It emphasizes practical approaches to business planning, marketing, financial management, and growth strategies, preparing participants to start and successfully manage their enterprises.
Complementing the SYB sessions, participants also received technical training tailored to specific agricultural value chains and trades. These included areas such as Fisheries, Fruit Juice Processing, and Cereals Processing — all selected for their potential to generate sustainable livelihoods and contribute significantly to local economic development. This dual approach—combining entrepreneurship training with technical specialization—ensures that participants are not only skilled producers but also competent business managers capable of adding value across the agricultural supply chain.
Evidence gathered from engagements with the Agogo BAC, training providers, development facilitators, and feedback from participants indicates that the project has been successfully executed. The initiative has enhanced participants’ capacity for innovation and enterprise management, thereby fostering sustainable agricultural entrepreneurship. Ultimately, this has contributed to job creation, income generation, and overall economic growth within the Asante Akyem North Municipality and across Ghana as a whole.
The success of the AA2E’s component under the BizBox Project underscores the transformative impact of targeted youth empowerment programs and highlights the crucial role of public-private collaboration in advancing Ghana’s agricultural and entrepreneurial development agenda.
