UNITAR Training for Afghan Youth: Advancing Business Innovation and Entrepreneurship

The programme will equip both men and women with the knowledge, skills, and network necessary to transform their ideas for a social or for-profit enterprise into a business model that addresses local challenges and contributes to building a resilient agricultural sector in Afghanistan.

The programme is free for participants and conducted with the full financial support of the Government and the People of Japan. The training programme will run in three phases from Aug 2024 – March 2025.

Learning Objectives 

• By the end of the programme, you will be able to:
  • Explore methods to create jobs and improve livelihoods despite economic challenges and food shortages.
  • Understand how entrepreneurial initiatives and innovative solutions can drive economic growth and address critical issues like food security.
  • Use practical tools and strategies to tackle food security issues through entrepreneurship.
  • Gain insights into the effects of climate change and adopt effective soil and crop management practices to enhance food security.
  • Evaluate food supply chains to identify key areas for intervention, optimize resource use, and address broader economic and gender-related issues.
  • Implement appropriate technologies to mitigate environmental challenges and improve community resilience against food insecurity.

Focus Areas

• The overall course is designed to encourage you to take action across six areas:
  • Nurture an Entrepreneurial Mindset 
    • You will learn to identify opportunities and mobilize resources to bring a new enterprise to life. You will be exposed to examples of social and commercial enterprises and international best practice, and encouraged to reflect on and develop your entrepreneurial style and capacity.
  • Digital Literacy and E-Commerce 
    • You will learn to use digital tools for business expansion, including online marketing and e-commerce management. This module covers the tools and techniques of design thinking and lean start-up to create desirable, feasible, viable, and sustainable solutions that solve social needs and problems, with a focus on building empathy, identifying needs through customer insights, ideation, prototyping, and experimentation.
  • Financial Planning and Management 
    • You will learn to design a business model for your enterprise, identify social needs, evaluate revenue and funding models, and formulate financial projections. This module also covers financial planning, budget management, and financial risk analysis. You will learn advanced financial management techniques and how to pitch to win funding, donations, and investment.
  • Agribusiness Fundamentals and Practices 
    • This module covers both the basics and advanced topics in agribusiness. You will learn about value chain analysis, market access, and innovative agribusiness techniques tailored to local needs.
  • Craft the Competitive and Risk Strategy 
    • You will learn the tools and techniques to develop competitive and riskmitigating strategies. You will learn how to appraise the competitive landscape and develop competitive strategies to win while mitigating the risks you are exposed to.
  • Leadership, Strategy, and Innovation 
    • This module focuses on developing leadership skills, strategic thinking, and fostering innovation. You will learn contemporary theories and practices of leadership, appraise your own leadership style, and engage stakeholders in building early-stage credibility and driving growth.

Programme Structure 

• The programme will run in three phases:
  • Phase 1 (August to November 2024): Approximately 150 participants will undergo online training on key topics in entrepreneurship and agribusiness. The programme will include self-paced online modules, interactive peer discussions, assignments, and expertled webinars by regional and international experts in the field. Participants will acquire the knowledge and skills to identify alternative livelihood opportunities with high potential for business start-ups in their own context.
  • Phase 2 (December to Jan 2025): Approximately 100 top-ranked participants from Phase 1 will progress to Phase 2. This phase involves advanced training on entrepreneurial tools, techniques, and best practices to devise solutions for food security challenges. Participants will also learn to launch innovative and sustainable businesses and projects, including climate-smart agricultural and aquacultural practices to counter environmental constraints and develop strategies to address them.
  • Phase 3 (Feb to March 2025): Approximately 25 top performers from Phase 2 will advance to Phase 3. They will develop ready-to-launch blueprints for novel enterprises/projects with significant potential for job creation and resilience-building within the agrifood sector. This phase includes a mentorship and coaching component that will occur online, with a possible intensive workshop held either online or in-person (details to be decided).

Eligibility Criteria

• The programme is open to motivated Afghan men and women who meet the following criteria:
  • Age: Between 18 and 35 years old.
  • Language Skills: Basic working knowledge of spoken and written English.
  • Education: Applicants with university degrees are highly encouraged to apply.
  • Experience and Interest: Demonstrated interest or experience in agribusiness, food security, or general entrepreneurship.
  • Commitment: Willing to commit a minimum of 2-4 hours per week to complete the programme.
  • Passion: Eager to succeed and make a positive impact on their community.
• UNITAR will review your application for your:
  • Keen passion to learn by doing and highly motivated to contribute to agriculture and economic. development in Afghanistan through self-led projects/enterprises.
  • Deep interest in entrepreneurship and agribusiness.
  • Commitment to actively participate throughout the entire duration of the programme.

For more information, visit UNITAR.