Zimbabwe Launches Ambitious Push for Youth-Led Agricultural Transformation  

The Government of Zimbabwe has declared the full integration of youth into the agricultural economy a non-negotiable pillar for achieving its national development goals, citing a groundbreaking Smallholder Agriculture Cluster Project as a replicable model for nationwide agriculture and development scaling.

Officially opening the All-Stakeholders National Youth Engagement Workshop at Rainbow Towers today, Mr. Jairos Mandizadza, Director of Gender Mainstreaming, Inclusivity and Wellness, said that the Government is currently implementing the National Youth Empowerment Strategy (2026–2030), a robust framework aimed at integrating young people into the mainstream economy through job creation, entrepreneurship, innovation, skills development and improved access to productive resources.”

The high-level forum brings together government ministries, development partners, private sector actors, and young agripreneurs.

In a hard-hitting address, Mandizadza framed the workshop not as a mere talking shop, but as a “strategic intervention” to address a critical national challenge: over 80% of the country’s productive youth lack formal employment, with young women and persons with disabilities disproportionately affected.

“The impacts of disasters are not gender-neutral,” Mandizadza stated, pointing to climate change—through droughts, cyclones, and shifting agricultural patterns—as a primary threat to rural youth livelihoods. “Young women and girls face heightened vulnerabilities, youth with disabilities experience barriers to recovery, and limited access to resources undermines youth resilience.”

The Director pointed to the ongoing Smallholder Agriculture Cluster Project (SACP) as tangible proof that targeted youth inclusion yields results. The 6-year project (2021–2027), funded in partnership with the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the OPEC Fund for International Development, is transforming smallholder agriculture in five provinces.

Mandizadza revealed that SACP has directly benefited 78,240 households through a strict, quota-based targeting model: 50% women, and 30% youth, with a precise gender split of 15% young women and 15% young men.

“SACP’s inclusive targeting model is one of the strongest demonstrated examples of our commitment to leaving no one behind,” he declared. The project has enabled previously marginalized groups to access irrigation schemes, rural infrastructure, Village Business Units (VBUs), and market-oriented value chains.

The workshop was positioned as a direct launchpad for the government’s new Agriculture and Food Systems Rural Transformation Strategy 2 (AFSRTS-2), which will run from 2026 to 2030. Mandizadza described AFSRTS-2 as the “blueprint for accelerated growth in the final lap towards Vision 2030.”

He outlined the strategy’s core pillars, which include modernizing 25 priority value chains, scaling horticulture exports like blueberries and citrus, and improving livestock genetics. Crucially, the strategy explicitly positions youth and women as “central drivers of agricultural transformation.”

“AFSRTS-2 calls for rural agro-hubs powered by young farmers and agripreneurs, digital agriculture and innovation ecosystems, mentorship pathways for young women, strengthened partnerships with youth-led organizations and inclusive financing instruments for youth enterprises,” Mandizadza told the gathered stakeholders.

Concluding with a firm call to action, the Director urged all development partners, private sector players, and government departments to replicate the SACP youth inclusion model across all provinces.

He mandated stakeholders to align their programs with both AFSRTS-2 and the forthcoming National Youth Empowerment Strategy (2026-2030), which aims to integrate young people into the mainstream economy through job creation, entrepreneurship, and improved access to productive resources.

Key demands included strengthening market linkages for youth-led enterprises, supporting climate-smart innovations and agro-tech, and investing in mentorship and incubation programmes.

“Let us work together to ensure that every young person in Zimbabwe sees agriculture as a space of opportunity, profitability and dignity,” Mandizadza concluded, officially declaring the workshop open.

The event signifies a concerted push by the government to convert policy commitments into actionable, field-level programs, leveraging proven models to tackle youth unemployment and build a climate-resilient, inclusive agricultural sector.