Growth on Both Sides: Reflections from a Coaching Experience

From February to August 2025, I had the opportunity to coach two incredible initiatives from the Benin Republic supported by the Co-Creation Fund, organized by AL For Agribusiness The two ventures I coached are Chemical Free Vegetables (CFV) and Empower Young Mothers (EYM). CFV aims to train smallholder farmers in organic farming techniques using natural inputs and sustainable practices, while EYM empowers young mothers through soap-making and financial literacy training to help them achieve financial independence.

This has been one of the most rewarding experiences in my professional journey. I rediscovered a real passion for coaching and mentoring young changemakers, which I hadn’t done in some time.

To anyone considering coaching youth ventures, do it. You will grow just as much as those you support. Through this process, I developed new coaching skills that I would love to share:

● Guide rather than give answers. I had to overcome the instinct to jump in with solutions. Instead, by exploring challenges alongside the team and unpacking root causes, I noticed they retained information better and became more independent in their problem-solving

● Practice active listening. Listening is hard, active listening even harder. Summarizing key points, navigating what worked or didn’t, and feeding it back clearly felt like a real superpower.

● Stay curious and humble. As a coach, you won’t always be an expert in every domain. A lot of things were new to me so I did my homework and also learned a great deal from the ventures themselves.

My most memorable moment during this journey was seeing the cross-learning that took place between the two teams. After completing a round with one group, I would ask the other what they had learned from listening in. They often picked up key insights, even though their projects are completely different and showed a strong willingness to apply that learning to their own context. It was a beautiful display of humility, curiosity, and shared growth.

What I have learned from this experience is that we have incredibly talented and driven young people who are committed to solving the problems of our continent. CFV and EYM are tackling deeply important issues, food security and financial empowerment of young mothers, through locally rooted solutions. Working at the local level helped them stay close to the realities on the ground. Both teams came to realize that many of their challenges were shaped by local context whether it was how their solutions were received, or how the gender digital divide in rural areas impacted the effectiveness of their programs.

Both ventures made remarkable strides over the six months, not only in what they achieved, but in how deeply committed they were to their communities. The Chemical Free Vegetables team often travelled to remote rural areas to ensure hands-on learning and their dedication is going even further as they want to develop commercial kits to support farmers beyond the training period.

On the other side, Empower Young Mothers completed their full program with notable milestones, including the launch of a project website. The team responded with care, localising content and simplifying their marketing approach in response to limited access to devices and the internet. Their consistent presence on the ground demonstrated their deep investment in both the growth and dignity of the women they served.

Both teams showed up, again and again, with humility, perseverance, and purpose. Their ability to adapt, learn, and stay rooted in the communities they served is what made coaching them such a powerful and inspiring experience. And I can for sure now say, I know a lot more about soap-making and chemical-free vegetables.

This experience has deepened my belief in the power of community-centred innovation. Coaching CFV and EYM reminded me that transformative change starts with small, consistent acts of care, and I am honoured to have played a part in their journey