Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture

Rural youth

Supporting the Creation and Management of a Caribbean Youth in Agriculture Virtual Business Incubator and Resource Hub

Tiempo de lectura: 3 mins.

The IICA Delegation in Saint Lucia with financial support of the Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA), and in collaboration with the Caribbean Agricultural Forum for Youth (CAFY) is implementing a project that aims to improve access by youth entrepreneurs to information and knowledge products that support their business start-up and successful business management.

The IICA Delegation in Saint Lucia with financial support of the Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA), and in collaboration with the Caribbean Agricultural Forum for Youth (CAFY) is implementing a project that aims to improve access by youth entrepreneurs to information and knowledge products that support their business start-up and successful business management.

The Virtual Business Incubator will support youth 
entrepreneurship  by providing unique information and knowledge
products to simplify business start-up and highlight business opportunities.

The rationale for the project stems from a recognized need for cost-effective mechanisms to support resource-poor youth entrepreneurs in the Caribbean in addressing information asymmetry-related barriers to business start-up. The premise for the action was also validated and endorsed by 35 youth entrepreneurs from CARICOM at the Dialogue 4 Development Youth in Agriculture (YiA) Business Forum held January 20 – 21 in Grenada. In fact, a regional platform for youth entrepreneur learning/equipping and peer-to-peer engagement was one of the first requests made by youth entrepreneurs to agriculture development institutions.   

Having begun in late May 2016, the project is wrapping up its first action of collating information on business start-up and the entrepreneurial ecosystem for the target 13 countries. This input will be used to generate user-friendly resources on doing business in each country that will be made available for free on the Incubator’s platform which will be built later this year. When operational the Virtual Business Incubator will support youth entrepreneurship by providing unique information and knowledge products to simplify business start-up and highlight business opportunities. In addition to creating the platform, the project will seek to create a management team of volunteering entrepreneurs, academics and support agencies to help shape the platform and increase by-in of support service providers across the region.

For more information contact: Brent Theophile (brent.theophile@iica.int)

Share

Related news​

Catamarca and Posadas, Argentina

July 11, 2025

IICA takes part in training sessions on innovation and technology use in agriculture for students and teachers from 530 Argentine schools

More information: Institutional Communication Division. comunicacion.institucional@iica.int

Tiempo de lectura: 3mins

San José, Costa Rica

July 11, 2025

Maritza Solano Arce, an entrepreneur who proved that high-quality gourmet cheeses can be produced in Costa Rica’s rural areas, is named an IICA Leader of Rurality of the Americas

Maritza produces twenty-five different varieties, including raclette, hard Gruyere cheeses, bloomy rind cheeses, such as Camembert and Brie, tomme cheeses and creamy gourmet cheeses in five different flavors.

Tiempo de lectura: 3mins

Santo Domingo, República Dominicana

July 9, 2025

Alongside agribusiness leaders in the Dominican Republic, IICA Director General highlights the opportunities afforded by Agriculture 4.0 to capitalize on the strategic potential of Latin America and the Caribbean

IICA Director General Manuel Otero delivered a keynote speech on innovation in production systems at the headquarters of the Dominican Agribusiness Board.

Tiempo de lectura: 3mins