2015 Tutu Fellow Mosunmola Cynthia Umora told her TEDx audience Ife, Nigeria about how she was broke, in debt and being called a failure as a startup farmer and entrepreneur.  Her advice: "Identify that reason, that purpose for which you have been created, and stick with it."  It is the only thing that will get you through those periods when the road is tough. 

She is a distinct type of farmer. For her, agriculture is a mainstay of the Nigerian economy and yet there is so little regard paid to it. Cynthia founded a company engaged in farming, food production, processing and distribution right out of college. The company has its flagship retail outlet under the Farmshoppe , a retail brand for freshly processed, organic farm produce.

She criticisizes the importing of food and agriproducts dumping in Nigeria to the detriment to the health and the economy of the country.  In an environment like this she says, no-one wants to be a farmer. Instead, she says, farmers in Nigeria should be able to compete as world-class growers and producers. Healthy food is not a luxury; instead, it is a basic human need.

Hear her talk.