Heifer calls for youth-led solutions, financing to tackle hunger

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With Africa facing a worsening hunger crisis that now affects nearly one in five people on the continent, Heifer International is calling on governments, investors, and development partners to urgently prioritise youth-led innovations and strengthen locally-driven solutions.

This comes as the organisation announced its strategic partnership and participation in the forthcoming Africa Food Systems Forum (AFSF 2025), taking place in Dakar, Senegal, from August 31 to September 5.

At the forum, Heifer will present a transformative approach that supports Africa’s youth to lead agricultural innovation and show how local partnerships and creative financing are helping smallholder farmers achieve lasting, scalable results.

The 2025 State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI) Report revealed that 307 million people in Africa, nearly one in five, are hungry. At the report’s launch, UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed warned that the world is “far off track” to meet the goal of ending hunger by 2030.

AFSF, Africa’s premier platform for dialogue and collaboration on food systems transformation, brings together thousands of policymakers, development agencies, farmers, agripreneurs, innovators, investors, and private sector leaders.

This year’s theme, “Africa’s Youth: Leading Collaboration, Innovation and Implementation of Agri-Food Systems Transformation”, directly aligns with Heifer’s new strategic direction to foster inclusive, resilient, and sustainable food systems, powered by youth, centred on smallholder farmers.

Heifer’s strategy differs from traditional donor models through an ecosystem approach that supports youth-led innovations, unlocking catalytic finance, and advancing community ownership. This new approach has shown significant promise.

At AFSF 2025, Heifer will present results of how collaborative action and systemic shifts toward inclusivity and sustainability are yielding results.

The organisation will also spotlight collaborative financing models that move beyond traditional donor approaches. A recent benchmark report by Aceli Africa, featuring the Heifer/Hello Tractor partnership, for instance, highlighted how blended finance and tech-driven mechanisation initiatives are improving incomes for hundreds of smallholder farmers, demonstrating scalable pathways for sustainable, resilient growth.

“Africa’s food systems demand bold, collaborative action that evolves traditional donor models to meet the continent's food security needs, sustainability and at scale,” Adesuwa Ifedi, Senior Vice President of Africa Programs at Heifer International, said.

One example comes from Senegal, where limited access to finance is a major barrier for rural women, often excluded from banks and microcredit. Through community-based Savings and Loans Groups, Heifer is supporting farming communities in closing this gap, Aissatou Deh, Treasurer of the JAM Group in Senegal, affirmed.