Temesgen Bishaw is a young man living in Ethiopia’s Amhara region. In 2018, he established a small poultry farm with the support of a local government program that promotes youth in business. Temesgen Bishaw launched his business with 150 chickens.

Recently, he received 144,000 Birr (approximately $3,500) from the regional government through an evolving fund mechanism and was able to expand operations. He also received technical support from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)-funded Feed the Future Ethiopia Value Chain Activity (VCA). Banyan Global is a subcontractor on VCA, leading gender and youth integration programming. The project provided training to Temesgen in poultry production and management, financial management, marketing, and record keeping. VCA, also provided access to farm inputs, equipment, and gear to help improve profitability.

This support enabled Temesgen to quadruple the shade for his farm, allowing him to raise 9,000 young hens. Recognizing his success, Banyan Global along with the project’s poultry team, approached him to participate in its flagship mentorship program, which connects successful business owners like Temesgen with others interested in starting or improving their businesses. 

Since 2021, Temesgen has served as a mentor and coach for 16 young men and women involved in the poultry business. In this capacity, he serves as a role model, organizing experience-sharing events for young people in his area, helping to identify how best to support them. 

Temesgen is grateful for the assistance he received from VCA and the mentorship program. He says:

“The training and regular support that I get from VCA, including mentorship delivery skills and techniques for my role, has been life-changing. Before the training and follow-up from the project, I was almost at a point of closing my business because it was not as profitable as I expected. But now, I envision a better future and plan to expand my farm even sooner and help the women and youth mentees under my supervision to be successful in their businesses.”