Mr Benjamin Gyan-Kesse, the Executive Director, Kosmos Innovation Centre (KIC), has reiterated the organisation’s commitment to empowering entrepreneurs in Africa to build innovative and scalable businesses in the agriculture sector.
Speaking at the launch of the organisation’s 10th anniversary in Accra, he said KIC would continue to support innovations, competitive agribusinesses, technology-enabled agriculture, and provide more opportunities for young women.
He said the organisation had, over the years, helped change the perception of agriculture, impacting over 700 schools across the country with the support of various partners.
“Ten years ago, KIC was not a certainty; it was a conviction that young people did not lack talent but lack support from institutions for their aspirations…
“Over the past decade, we have built an ecosystem that allows young people to thrive and come up with innovations…our work has been about dignity, confidence and urgency, and creating spaces where limitations once appeared permanent,” he said.
The anniversary celebration, on the theme: “A Decade of Youth Innovation, Impact and Agricultural Transformation,” would include exhibitions, alumnae engagement, thought leadership and community-centred activities in the months ahead.
Mr Gyan-Kese commended stakeholders for their support, adding that the organisation would continue to invest in sustainable enterprises.
“Agriculture today is no longer confined to the field alone; it about technology, logistics and digital systems, food innovations and value addition, enterprise, renewable energy and mechanisation…young people across the country are proving this everyday and that gives us confidence,” he said.
Mr Paul Kasanga, Country Director, Mastercard Foundation, called for more partnership between institutions, noting that the agriculture sector must be prioritised as an economic opportunity, and not as “a last resort.”
“Across Africa, one of the defining opportunities of our time is ensuring that young people continue to find dignifying and fulfilling work…
“To unlock agriculture to its potential, it must evolve; it must become more inclusive, more technology-enabled, and more attractive to young people,” he stated, and commended KIC for the successes achieved over the past decade.
Nana Joe Mensah, Board Chairman, KIC, said the organisation had created 64,165, jobs since inception, and highlighted projects including vocational centres, Information Technology (IT) resource centres, that have impacted communities.
“KIC does not simply organise competitions and hand out prizes…it works with young people over time; it helps them understand markets, helps them test ideas, sharpen business plans, reach investors, and develop the confidence to lead,” he stated.
KIC, established in 2016 as a non-profit organisation, empowers young enterpreneurs and small businesses to turn ideas into viable, self-sustaining businesses.
It focuses on youth leadership, entrepreneurship development, innovative and sustainable agriculture solutions, access to productive resources, gender inclusion, policy and advocacy.
GNA
Edited by Agnes Boye-Doe
1 June 2026
Caption: Picture attached
Writer: Ernest Nutsugah
Email: [email protected]
