As part of its commemoration of International Youth Day 2026, the Foundation for Sustainable Smallholder Solutions (FSSS) engaged thousands of young people, entrepreneurs, innovators and agriculture stakeholders through the launch of GroundBreakers, a new youth-focused initiative designed to inspire, equip and connect young Nigerians with opportunities across agriculture, agribusiness and agricultural technology.

The inaugural edition of the initiative featured GroundBreakers Live 2026, a two-day virtual webinar series held under the theme, “Connecting Youth, Innovation, and the Future of Food.” The event brought together leading agritech founders and industry experts to share insights on the future of agriculture and the role young people can play in transforming food systems.

The first session explored how technology is reshaping agriculture and featured Aisha Rilwanu Sidi, CEO of Grabb Livestock, and Dayo Akinbami, CEO, CTO and Co-founder of Agrofount. Both speakers challenged participants to focus on solving real-world problems rather than pursuing technology for its own sake. Aisha encouraged young innovators to understand farmers’ realities before designing solutions, while Dayo highlighted the growing importance of agricultural data in improving access to finance, decision-making and innovation.

On the second day, Seyi Alabi, Co-founder of Crop2Cash, led discussions on building profitable agribusinesses in the digital age. He encouraged participants to look beyond production and explore opportunities in financing, logistics, extension services, market access and farmer data systems. He also highlighted the widening gap in agricultural extension services and challenged young innovators to develop scalable solutions that can better support farmers.

As part of the week-long celebration, FSSS also officially launched the Global Agri Entrepreneurship Academy (GAEA), a platform created to nurture the next generation of agricultural entrepreneurs and changemakers. The academy will provide access to expert-led learning, mentorship, industry insights, practical resources and a growing network of young professionals committed to transforming agriculture.

According to FSSS, both GroundBreakers and GAEA reflect the organisation’s commitment to empowering young people with the skills, knowledge and opportunities needed to drive innovation across food systems. Building on the success of the inaugural edition, FSSS plans to bring GroundBreakers back in 2027 with the ambition of making it bigger and creating opportunities for in-person engagement, collaboration and networking. Through these initiatives, the organisation continues to invest in young people as leaders and problem-solvers shaping the future of agriculture.