Emerging Voices in ICT and agriculture - CTA Publishing

AGAINST ALL ODDS
Euphrèm Akaffou N’depo,
Côte d’Ivoire, West Africa
Founder and owner of a
poultry and cane rat farm
set up with a group of young
entrepreneurs. The income
generated has financed my
studies to become an agrifood
engineer.
Born in Côte d’Ivoire in 1985, I graduated from the
prestigious scientific high school of Yamoussoukro,
where I specialized in mathematics. I was accepted
at the College of Technology and passed my first-level
university diploma in chemistry/food engineering.
My experiences after getting this diploma form the
basis of my essay. Today I am an agri-food engineer
and am applying my knowledge to the agricultural
sector, where I plan to achieve even greater goals.
My blog: www.euphryagrifood.blogspot.com
Essay summary
The prospects looked bleak when young Ivorian
Euphrèm N’depo set out to launch his career
after graduating in food chemistry and engineering.
N’depo, 26, knocked on many doors to find his
first job, but all were in vain. The odds were stacked
against him. Jobs are increasingly scarce in both
the public and private sectors of Côte d’Ivoire, and
unemployment in the 15-24 age groups has risen
to over 24%. For the 25-34 age range, the rate is
17.5%. In N’depo’s sector the picture is even more
grim. The jobless rate among graduates like him
is now 42%. One in two Ivoirians are officially
classed as living in poverty.
Undaunted, N’depo decided to launch into the
small livestock business, opting for rearing poultry
and cane rats (grasscutters). Realising that
he would need some technical knowledge to help
him in his new venture, he set about investigating
how to obtain some training. As the cost of
the centres offering courses were way beyond
his means, and the distances much too far,
N’depo decided to turn to the Internet. Easier
said than done in the rural community of Irobo
where he lived, about 100 km from Abidjan. Here
there was no landline connection to the Internet.
The nearest one was at Dabou, 50 km away.
Distance learning
N’depo has never been one to give up easily and
is a young man full of resources. He resolved to
get round the latest obstacle using bluetooth
technology and a GPRS-enabled mobile phone
to line to the Internet. He soon found all the
information he needed.
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Emerging Voices in ICT and agriculture | PART 3