On August 26, 2026, the Roots Africa community gathered at Gulu University in Northern Uganda for our Annual Symposium, Exhibition, Quiz and Pitch Competition.
At least 186 people were recorded at the event, representing nine partner universities, farming communities, local government, partners, mentors and friends of Roots Africa from Uganda, Liberia, and the United States. Six ventures reached the pitch final from 17 assessed, while six university chapters competed in the Quiz Competition.
But the numbers are only part of the story.
The day was really about seeing whether the work we talk about all year could stand on its own.
And what we saw gave us plenty to be hopeful about.
Products, not posters.
Our exhibition opened in the morning and stayed active throughout the day.
Changemakers did not simply display posters explaining what they might do someday. They brought products, prototypes and enterprises they are already building: natural products, processed foods and drinks, agricultural innovations, seedlings, honey and other locally developed solutions.
Students stood beside their work and answered questions from farmers, university leaders, government representatives, partners and potential supporters.
What are you making? Who needs it? Can you make it consistently?
Can it become a business? What would it take to scale?
Those conversations matter.
The creativity is already there. The next challenge is helping these young producers strengthen the systems behind the products: quality control, standard operating procedures, reliable sourcing, packaging, food safety, logistics, certification and access to markets.
Sometimes investment is money.
Sometimes investment is opening the doors of a factory, laboratory or production line and saying, “Come learn how this is done at scale.”
The classroom got competitive. 😄🏆
The Roots Africa Quiz Competition was not simply about trivia.
It was a test of what changemakers had retained from months of learning through the Changemakers Program: agriculture, entrepreneurship, community practice, leadership and an understanding of the Roots Africa ecosystem itself.
After the questions, tie-breaks and plenty of friendly university rivalry, Mountains of the Moon University emerged as the 2026 Roots Africa Quiz Champion, with Uganda Martyrs University as First Runner-Up.
The trophy went to one university. The bigger win was seeing young people take their learning seriously enough to put it to the test.
Six ventures. Two tracks. Real ideas on the line.
This was our third Roots Africa Pitch Competition in Uganda, and the purpose remains simple: give young changemakers the opportunity to research an idea, test it, build something and defend its potential in front of people who can help them improve it.
This year we competed across two tracks.
Business Venture Track
🥇 Muffy Fruit Juice Venture, Gulu University - $500
🥈 Pearl Avocado Venture, Uganda Martyrs University - $250
🥉 Harvest Harmony, Liberia International Christian College - $150
Community Impact Track
🥇 Swine Farm Solution, Mountains of the Moon University - $500
🥈 OBO Agri Ventures, Gulu University - $250
🥉 Agro-Ambassadors, Liberia International Christian College - $150
The awards are catalytic, not the finish line.
For us, the more important question is what happens six months from now.
Did production increase? Did the business reach new customers? Did farmers earn more? Did a prototype become a reliable product? Did somebody get a job? Did the venture become strong enough to continue without Roots Africa?
That is the standard we want to keep raising.
And then the farmers spoke.
Some of the most important moments of the day did not come from judges or university leaders.
They came from the communities.
One changemaker described how a demonstration initiative that began with 15 farmers had grown to 60. Another farmer association shared a journey from 15 members to 50, formal registration and pooled local resources that helped them grow from two pigs to eleven.
Nobody handed them eleven pigs.
They organized. They learned. They invested their own resources. They built.
That is the kind of transformation we care about.
Because ultimately, Roots Africa is not trying to run projects forever.
We are asking a harder question:
If Roots Africa stepped away, would the work continue?
Universities are more than venues.
One of the clearest lessons from Gulu is that African universities can become powerful bridges between knowledge and the communities surrounding them.
The continent already has students studying agriculture, business, technology, communications and development.
The question is how we help that knowledge leave the lecture theatre.
Our model begins with university clubs, moves young people through training and mentorship, organizes them into Pods, connects them with farming communities and challenges them to build enterprises and services that solve real problems.
The university has knowledge.
The community has knowledge.
The changemaker becomes the bridge.
That is why, following this event, we are returning to our university partners to review and strengthen our MOUs for the next phase of the program.
Watch the Event 🎥
Missed Gulu? We recorded it.
The full livestream captures nearly the entire day, from the opening and farmer stories to the Quiz, Pitch Competition, awards and closing reflections. It is several hours long, so consider it the director’s cut. 😄
Watch the full livestream: https://us06web.zoom.us/rec/share/i2KQdm966p3_VmzCMc4oqFMuNyeEGLt7KKQUhMH7xWMzLc_KCq_nKmlCc4K2EtcE.cK6BFbWxqh756KPZ?startTime=1787732985000
Passcode: *aY2Qd9=
If eight-plus hours feels ambitious, we understand. We are also releasing shorter videos from the event on YouTube, highlighting the conversations, pitches, exhibition, competitions and people who made the day what it was.
Start with the official trailer to be premiered during the week
Over the coming weeks, we will continue releasing new clips and highlights, so subscribe to our YouTube channel and follow Roots Africa to experience the event one story at a time.
There is much more from Gulu still to come.
I’d use “director’s cut 😄” because it acknowledges the very long livestream without making it sound burdensome, while directing most readers toward the shorter content you’ll be releasing.
So, what happens next?
We left Gulu encouraged, but also very clear about the work ahead.
We need stronger pathways for young entrepreneurs to learn production, quality assurance and supply-chain systems.
We need deeper partnerships between universities and surrounding farming communities.
We need better measurement of farmer income, youth employment and enterprise growth.
And we need more people willing to invest their experience, not only their money.
If you are a manufacturer, researcher, university, laboratory, agribusiness professional, supply-chain expert, mentor, investor or institution that can help a young African entrepreneur learn something they cannot yet learn on their own, we want to hear from you.
Help us train one changemaker.
Mentor one venture.
Open one production line.
Connect one product to a market.
Help one young person take world-class knowledge and turn it into something that creates opportunity at home.
Because the goal is bigger than an event.
It is an Africa where young people can stay, lead and build.
An Africa where farming communities increase their incomes.
An Africa where knowledge becomes enterprise.
An Africa that moves from consuming what others make to producing more of what the world needs.
The event is over. The building continues.
Africa Building From Within.
📧 info@roots-africa.org
📞 +1 (240) 350-2325
🌍 rootsafrica.org