Agrilife24.com:The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in Bangladesh, in collaboration with the World Food Forum (WFF) Bangladesh Chapter, convened the Bootcamp round of “Innovators’ Brew Season II: Youth Agri Startup Olympiad” at Sheraton Dhaka, bringing together young entrepreneurs with innovative solutions to address challenges across Bangladesh’s agrifood systems.
Inspired by the 2026 World Food Day theme, “Innovate today. Nourish tomorrow,” the initiative aims to harness young people's creativity, entrepreneurial potential and technological capabilities to advance more inclusive, resilient and sustainable agrifood systems.
The Olympiad attracted nearly 90 applications from young agripreneurs across the country, presenting practical, scalable and inclusive solutions. Following a competitive evaluation process, 20 promising teams were selected to participate in the Bootcamp Round, where they presented their startup ideas and business solutions to a panel of experts from FAO and leading agritech startups.
Each team delivered a four minute pitch, followed by a six minute question and answer session, allowing the panel to assess the solutions' innovation, feasibility, scalability and potential impact on the agrifood sector.
ImanunNabi Khan, Assistant FAO Representative in Bangladesh, delivered the welcome remarks, emphasizing the vital role of young people in transforming Bangladesh’s agrifood systems through innovation and entrepreneurship. He encouraged youth to explore opportunities across the agricultural value chain and develop solutions to address food security, nutrition and sustainability challenges.
A distinguished panel of judges, comprising eminent experts and industry leaders from the agrifood and innovation sectors, evaluated the participating teams’ solutions, bringing valuable expertise and insight into the selection process. The panel included Imtiaz Farhan bin Habib, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Founder of Agronochain, Diptha Saha, Cofounder and Chief Operating Officer (COO), Agroshift, Surajit Sarkar, National Mechanization Specialist, FAO, Mohammod Arif Hossain, Data Protection and Cybersecurity Expert, FAO while Md Monjurul Alam, National Senior Precision Agriculture and Technical Advisor, FAO chaired the session.
Dia Sanou, Deputy FAO Representative in Bangladesh, delivered an inspirational closing address, encouraging young innovators to view agriculture as a dynamic sector offering opportunities beyond traditional farming, including technology, agribusiness, processing, logistics and digital services.
The Bootcamp Round will select the top teams to pitch their innovative solutions to a distinguished panel of judges at a High Level Dialogue Forum in November 2026. The forum will recognize the top three teams, offering them opportunities to integrate, incubate and scale their innovations through innovation hubs under FAO Bangladesh's ongoing portfolio.
Through Innovators’ Brew Season II, FAO and the World Food Forum Bangladesh Chapter aim to strengthen youth participation in agrifood innovation and entrepreneurship, creating pathways for young people to become drivers of agricultural transformation and contribute to Bangladesh's food systems of the future.
By connecting young innovators with experts, stakeholders and potential incubation opportunities, the initiative seeks to turn promising ideas into viable enterprises that can generate employment, strengthen agrifood value chains and contribute to sustainable development.
