Saint Vincent and the Grenadines holds first youth dialogue to inform the creation of a WFF National Youth Chapter

On 1 April 2026, young farmers, agrifood system actors, community entrepreneurs and institutional representatives gathered at the University of the West Indies (UWI) Open Campus in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines for the first youth dialogue held as part of the process to establish the WFF Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Youth Chapter. The dialogue took place within the framework of the National Zero Hunger Dialogue and the 10th anniversary of the Zero Hunger Trust Fund (ZHTF).

The dialogue provided a platform to explore challenges and opportunities across agrifood systems in the country, and to identify priorities to inform the development of the Chapter and future youth engagement initiatives.

Discussions were structured around six agrifood systems areas: production and inputs, aggregation and storage, processing and value addition, distribution and trade, consumption and nutrition, and waste management and circularity. Participants also examined cross-cutting issues related to governance, innovation and technology.

Participants highlighted key barriers affecting youth participation in agrifood systems, including limited access to finance and land, climate-related vulnerabilities, labour shortages, insufficient technical support and persistent perceptions of agriculture as a low-status sector.

At the same time, the dialogue underscored opportunities to strengthen local agrifood systems through youth-focused training programmes, agro-processing initiatives, cooperative models, climate-smart agriculture and improved market linkages for local producers. Participants also emphasized the importance of structured pathways for young people to engage in decision-making and agrifood systems governance.

The session resulted in the identification of key priorities and proposed actions to guide the development of the Chapter and to contribute to broader national discussions on food security. A summary matrix mapping identified gaps and proposed interventions across agrifood systems was also developed.

The dialogue marked an important step towards strengthening youth participation in agrifood systems transformation in the country. Through this process, the Chapter aims to foster intergenerational dialogue, collaboration and meaningful youth participation in building more resilient and inclusive agrifood systems.