AYuTe NextGen 2025 Youth-Led Agri-Tech Innovators conference set for Kampala

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Africa’s brightest young Agri-Tech innovators are set to gather in Kampala for the forthcoming AYuTe (Agriculture, Youth, and Technology) NextGen 2025 Conference slated for this June. Created and organised by Heifer International, this high-impact event is a flagship platform designed by youth, for youth, where technology meets agriculture.

Under the theme AgTech Generation Rising, the 2025 conference will convene young innovators, investors, policymakers, and development partners.

The 2025 AYuTe NextGen conference follows an intense, continent-wide competition that drew over 100 applicants from 10 countries. Through rigorous technical assessment sessions in Lagos and Nairobi, 11 finalists emerged, armed with solutions that are climate-smart, market-ready, and focused on access to finance and scale.

The Uganda winner of the country level competition is Assumpta Nakalema, who developed a solar-powered egg incubator that is already reducing post-harvest losses and energy dependency for poultry farmers.

Nakalema.

“The AYuTe NextGen platform doesn’t just identify innovations, it builds the ecosystem needed for sustained growth and impact," Nakalema said.

She and ten others will pitch live before a panel of investors, policymakers, and ecosystem enablers, with the chance to secure catalytic seed funding, mentorship, and a place in the innovation ecosystem being provided by Heifer and its strategic partners.

“This is the AgTech generation rising, ready, capable, and already leading. With AYuTe NextGen, we are spotlighting youth as the true architects of Africa’s agricultural future and giving them the tools and partnerships they need to scale solutions that build resilient, inclusive food systems,” Adesuwa Ifedi, Senior Vice President for Africa Programs, Heifer International, noted.

Dayo Aduroja, Africa Youth and Innovation Lead at Heifer International, highlighted that young people are proving that Africa’s agriculture can be both innovative and profitable.

“This year's competition generated many bold, creative solutions from across the continent. The conference provides a platform where ideas meet opportunity, and solutions gain the capital and support needed to scale.”

Africa’s population is the fastest growing globally, projected to reach 4.3 billion and with the continent is simultaneously grappling with a food system strained by climate change.