On the occasion of the 2012 Conference of the African Chapter of the International Association of Agricultural Information Specialists (IAALD) the ARDYIS project implemented by CTA will organize a series of activities, including the prize giving ceremony of the YoBloCo Awards and a workshop:

The Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation ACP-EU (CTA) has just announced the winners of the first edition of the Youth in Agriculture Blog Competition (YoBloCo Awards).

Winners in the institutional category will receive each 3,000 Euros, while individual winners will receive up to 1,500 Euros. In addition, winners and runners-up selected (14 individuals and organizations) will attend an international conference, their blogs will be promoted and they will have the opportunity to be involved in other activities.

We are pleased to announce the names of the 15 finalists for the YoBloCo Awards – individual category, resulting from the voting process that took place from 5 to 31 December 2011. During this period, for the individual category, we received a total of 2214 votes, from 2080 people (voting for two blogs was possible) and more than 600 comments for the institutional category. This is a great outcome, and we would like to thank voters and everyone again for your support and your interest in this initiative.

The CTA’s ARDYIS Project and its partners are proud to announce that public evaluation is now open for the “Youth in Agriculture Blog Competition” (YoBloCo Awards)!

It is with great pleasure that the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) Agency and the Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation ACP-EU (CTA) announce the winners of the Photo and Essay competitions that have been organized to celebrate NEPAD’s 10th Anniversary. This competition also falls in the framework of CTA activities on youth, women and ICTs.

The Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation ACP-EU (CTA), in collaboration with FARA, Yam-Pukri, CAFAN, AYF, ANAFE, SPC/PAFPNET is organizing the Youth in Agriculture Blog Competition (YoBloCo Awards). This contest is launched in the framework of the ARDYIS initiative which aims to raise youth awareness and improve their capacity on agricultural and rural development issues in ACP countries using  Information Technology.

Tackling Jamaica’s Two Main Agricultural Plagues with ICT: Praedial Larceny and Information Asymmetries/Poor Marketing

By Tyrone Christopher Hall, from Jamaica : Caribbean Regional Winner and overall all ACP Winner of the CTA ARDYIS Essay contest.

The winners were announced at the CTA/NPCA Week 2010 in South Africa during a Gala Dinner organized on 24 November 2010. The winners are:

« Youth finding solutions to challenges in agriculture and rural development using ICTs! »

This was the main theme of essay contest launched within the framework of the ARDYIS (Agriculture, Rural Development and Youth in the Information Society) project implemented by CTA (Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation ACP-EU), in collaboration with various partners (FARA, Yam-Pukri, ANAFE, CAFAN, AYF, PAFPnet/SPC). About 180 youth (35% of women) from 33 ACP countries (Africa, Caribbean and Pacific) submitted their analysis and proposals. Participants are students enrolled in communication, economics, data computing, agricultural or other studies, young farmers, young professionals in various sectors.

The finals (oral presentations) of the CTA ARDYIS Essay Contest as well as the prize giving ceremony will be held during the CTA Week 2010 events in Pretoria, South Africa.