Young Farmers Champions Network

What Young Farmers Champions Network does

Young Farmers Champions Network (YOFCHAN) is a Ugandan non-profit founded in 2017 and headquartered in Kampala, operating as a community-led network of 270 youth champions across 13 sub-regions in Uganda. Its mission is to equip young people (18–35) with the knowledge, tools, and resources to build agribusiness enterprises, and the organization has reached 3,200 youth through training, mentorship, market linkages, and policy advocacy. The core offerings are the Youth Inspiring Youth in Agriculture (YIYA) program (delivered with FAO and the Ministry of Agriculture), tailored capacity-building services in business mindset, financial literacy, and modern agronomic practices, and two Youth Agricultural Parks (YAPs) on 60 acres in Nwoya district that provide collaborative farming blocks, irrigation, bulking facilities, and extension services.

YOFCHAN runs on grant funding from international development partners — primarily USAID through the Uganda Civil Society Strengthening Activity (CSSA), FAO, East West Management Institute (EWMI), and Feed the Future — with additional operational support from the Government of Uganda through the Parish Development Model (PDM), under which 30% of PDM loans are ring-fenced for youth and 15 youth have already accessed loans through the network. The staff count is 6 and the organization is led by Executive Director Tumwebaze Khamutima. Revenue is not disclosed; the only quantified financial outputs are USD 40,000+ in capital accessed by youth champions and 50 million UGX (approximately USD 14,000) in harvest sales from 75 beneficiaries at one YAP, neither of which represents YOFCHAN's own income stream.

From a build perspective, YOFCHAN is not a technology company: it carries no proprietary software, no mobile app, no API, and no documented AI/ML components. Its "platform" is the physical champion network and the YAP infrastructure. Distribution runs through the champion-to-peer model, with marketing executed via a WordPress blog, Facebook, Twitter/X, LinkedIn, and Instagram, plus in-person events such as the Harvest Money Expo. The strategic moat rests on community depth, government embedding (PDM), and physical farming assets rather than technology.

Name

Young Farmers Champions Network

Legal name

Young Farmers Champions Network

Website

https://yofchan.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Young Farmers Champions Network (YOFCHAN) is a Ugandan non-profit that runs a network of 270 youth champions across 13 sub-regions, delivering agricultural training, market linkages, and collaborative farming infrastructure to 3,200 youth, funded primarily by USAID, FAO, and EWMI.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Youth Agricultural Development Services

NAICS

Support Activities for Crop Production (11511)

SIC

Agricultural Services (700)

akta.pro primary industry

Agriculture & Food Security Development (BPAGABAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Youth Mentoring & Positive Youth Development Nonprofits (BPAGADAD), Institutional Capacity Building & Training (Workforce/Systems Strengthening) (BPADAEAC)

Keywords

• Youth agricultural development
• Agricultural capacity building
• Agribusiness training programs
• Smallholder farmer support
• Agricultural value chain linkage

Headquarters

HQ city

Kampala

HQ country

Uganda

HQ region

Africa

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Grant funding: As a non-profit organization, YOFCHAN primarily operates through grant funding from international development organizations and government agencies. Major funders include USAID through the Uganda Civil Society Strengthening Activity (CSSA) and FAO for agricultural development projects.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Young Farmers Champions Network (YOFCHAN) is a Ugandan non-profit that operates a network of 270 youth agricultural champions across 13 sub-regions who inspire, train, and link fellow young people to better markets, affordable finance, modern farming techniques, and policy advocacy opportunities. Its core offerings include Youth Agricultural Parks for collaborative farming, the Youth Inspiring Youth in Agriculture (YIYA) initiative, and tailor-made capacity building and training services in agribusiness, financial literacy, and value addition.

Product overview

Young Farmers Champions Network (YOFCHAN) is a non-profit membership organization that operates as a network of youth champions in agriculture across Uganda. Rather than a traditional SaaS product, YOFCHAN functions as a facilitation and capacity-building network that connects young farmers to markets, affordable finance, training opportunities, and agricultural resources. The core offerings include Youth Agricultural Parks (collaborative farming spaces), the Youth Inspiring Youth in Agriculture initiative, and comprehensive capacity building and training services. The network operates across 13 sub-regions in Uganda, supporting 270 youth champions who inspire and train fellow youth to view agriculture as a viable business enterprise.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Youth Agricultural Parks (YAP) Collaborative farming spaces established in Nwoya district where youth groups farm together on shared land. The parks provide farming blocks, irrigation, bulking facilities, extension services, and access to machinery services for youth agripreneurs in Uganda.
• Youth Inspiring Youth in Agriculture (YIYA) A competitive initiative implemented in partnership with FAO and the Uganda Ministry of Agriculture that identifies and supports young agricultural entrepreneurs across Uganda through capacity building training on business support, mindset shift, and value addition.
• Capacity Building and Training Services Tailor-made capacity development services for youth champions covering business mindset training, farming as a business, agricultural entrepreneurship, financial literacy, and modern agronomic practices.

Quantifiable outcome

• 3200 youth impacted through network programs
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFAO partners with YOFCHAN on the Youth Inspiring Youth in Agriculture (YIYA) initiative, providing training, mentorship, and climate-smart agriculture support to youth champions across Uganda.
• East West Management Institute (EWMI)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEWMI supports YOFCHAN's initiatives as part of civil society strengthening efforts in Uganda.
• Uganda Ministry of AgriculturecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Ministry collaborates with YOFCHAN on the Youth Inspiring Youth in Agriculture initiative and supports policy advocacy efforts for youth engagement in agriculture.
• Nwoya District Local GovernmentcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal government partners to establish Youth Agricultural Parks and facilitate access to PDM loans (30% allocation to youth) and agricultural services.
• Isingiro District Local GovernmentcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDistrict local government partners on Green Climate Youth Champions project providing climate-smart agriculture training and support.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• TechnoServe: An international non-profit operating across Africa that supports smallholder farmers and agripreneurs through training, market access, and value-chain development. Highly comparable to YOFCHAN's mission of building sustainable agribusinesses for underserved populations.
• Farm Africa: A UK-based non-profit working with farmers, pastoralists, and agribusinesses in eastern Africa on sustainable agriculture, market access, and climate resilience. Closely comparable target audience and East African geographic focus as YOFCHAN.
• Heifer International: A global non-profit that works with smallholder farmers to build sustainable agricultural enterprises, with strong youth-focused programming in Africa. Comparable as a peer-led, training-and-asset-transfer model serving rural African youth in agriculture.
• One Acre Fund: A large-scale non-profit agricultural development organization serving smallholder farmers across East Africa with training, inputs, and market access. Directly comparable to YOFCHAN in serving smallholder farmers with bundled training, finance, and market-linkage services, though at significantly larger scale.
• Self Help Africa: An international development NGO working with smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa on enterprise development, climate adaptation, and market access. Strongly comparable in mission, beneficiary type, and East African operational footprint.

Broad incumbents

• Mercy Corps: A global humanitarian organization with significant agricultural development programming in Uganda focused on market systems, youth employment, and resilience. Overlaps with YOFCHAN's youth-in-agriculture focus in Uganda but operates broader multi-sectoral programs.
• BRAC: A global development organization with significant agriculture and youth programs in Uganda and across Africa, including microfinance, training, and livestock support. Comparable in championing youth smallholder development at scale, with a much broader portfolio.
• CARE International: A major international humanitarian organization with extensive agricultural development and youth economic empowerment programs across Africa, including Uganda. Comparable in addressing similar value-chain and youth-finance challenges though via larger, multi-sectoral programs.
• AGRA (Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa): A large African-led institution working across the continent to catalyze agricultural transformation through policy, inputs, and market systems. Comparable in thematic focus on African agricultural development, but operates at policy and systems level rather than direct youth champion networks.

Emerging players

• Shamba Shape Up: An East African agricultural advisory media platform supporting smallholder farmers with training on modern practices across Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania. Comparable in prioritizing youth engagement and modern farming techniques in East Africa, though via media rather than network model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/yofchan
• Facebookfacebook.com/YoungFarmersChampionsNetwork
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/young-farmers-champions-network
• Instagraminstagram.com/yofchan

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Young Farmers Champions Network