In Mchinji District, Malawi, 18-year-old Kherena Medson exemplifies how targeted opportunities can transform young lives. Once forced to leave school due to financial difficulties, Kherena now runs a thriving poultry enterprise, supports her family, and has resumed her education, thanks to the FAO–UNFPA joint project “Action for Teen Mothers and Adolescent Girls and Boys,” supported by the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA).
Implemented between 2021 and 2024, the initiative leverages the combined expertise of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), and the Government of Malawi to tackle the interlinked challenges of youth unemployment, early pregnancy, and limited access to education.
Through Junior Farmer Field and Life Schools (JFFLS), FAO equips young people with skills in agriculture, agribusiness, and entrepreneurship, while UNFPA delivers life skills and sexual and reproductive health education. Participants also receive seed capital grants to launch group enterprises, enabling them to apply their training in real-world business ventures.
Kherena and her peers from the Tinaliyani JFFLS received USD 4,482 in grants and training in poultry production, which allowed them to build a profitable poultry business. “FAO’s support gave us more than just income, it gave us purpose,” Kherena said. “We sell eggs, pay for school, and plan to expand our poultry business.”
Overall, FAO disbursed over USD 170,000 in grants to 1,065 young people, 80 percent of whom are female. Many beneficiaries have established successful small businesses in poultry, horticulture, and food processing, demonstrating how the integrated approach promotes both economic empowerment and social reintegration, while enabling young people to continue their education.
The collaboration between FAO, UNFPA, and KOICA underscores the potential of empowering adolescent girls and boys through agriculture and education to foster inclusive rural development. By linking economic opportunity with life skills and education, the project contributes to Malawi’s national youth empowerment strategy and aligns with FAO’s global priorities of reducing rural poverty and leaving no one behind.
