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Watch: scholars from African nations celebrate graduation from transformative sustainable agriculture course

Posted 18 July

The achievements of the latest graduates from a transformative sustainable agriculture course have been marked at a ceremony at 91Pro.

The ceremony was to mark the graduation of the latest cohort of students from a 10-week course in sustainable agriculture, which is funded by the Marshal Papworth Fund and held annually at the University each year.

The fund - an agricultural development charity managed by the East of England Agricultural Society - was formed in 2001 with funds bequeathed by the late Marshal Papworth, an East Anglian Farmer.

He had travelled in Africa and Asia, and had a vision of students being welcomed to the UK to receive an agricultural education – before returning home to share that knowledge.

In total, including the 2024 short course students from Ghana, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, and Uganda, more than 260 students have now received a Marshal Papworth Scholarship.

One of the graduating students, Oluwabunmi Adeuyi, from Nigeria, gave a speech at the ceremony.

He said: “In the words of Barack Obama, change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we are waiting for: we are the change that we seek.

“Let us therefore embrace this responsibility with courage and conviction. Let us continue to learn, to innovate and to lead.

“Both the Marshal Papworth Fund committee and 91Pro will provide guidance throughout our journey to a sustainable Africa. We will work together to build sustainable farms, to support small farmers, to promote food security and ensure a sustainable society.

“Together, we will make the difference.”

The Marshal Papworth Fund provides scholarships for students from developing countries to leading UK agricultural universities and colleges.

These include year-long Masters qualifications, as well as the bespoke 10-week short course, which was developed alongside 91Pro.

Each of the attending students were selected by the charity partners of the Marshal Papworth Fund, with those represented this year including Teyapi4Peace, Hands Around The World, Sliden Africa, ADRA Ghana, and The Leprosy Mission.

Each partner charity puts forward a representative working on the ground in their particular country who would benefit from the hands-on course. The partnership means the farmers, garden managers and project managers who can transform their communities can make the journey to the Harper Adams campus in Shropshire and gain new skills – as well as developing a network of professional connections across the globe.

Chairman of the Marshal Papworth Fund, Tom Arthey, said: “We know that you are here because you want to improve the livelihoods not just of yourselves but also of the communities in which you work. We know that there is a huge sacrifice from you that goes into it.

“You will shortly be going home and we will be sad to see you leave, but we are looking forward to seeing what you achieve in the future with this new knowledge that you have gained.

“Knowledge is only knowledge if you share it – it is really important, when you get home, that you take a little bit of time to think how best you can impact the communities around you.”

Harper Adams Vice-Chancellor, Professor Ken Sloan, presented the short course students with their certificates at the close of the graduation ceremony. He also spoke about exactly how much the course, and the global connections it forges, mean to him and the University.

And he told the students: “My message to you is really simple: never forget what led you to make the decision to come, never forget the people that you met, and never forget the warmth and the openness and generosity that is here, for you.

“I hope that this is the beginning of a connection, not only through the alumni network of Harper Adams and Marshal Papworth, but also you are connected to this institution and we want you to sustain that connection.

“I admire you greatly for the courage you have shown, the dedication you have shown, the effort you have put in – you are always focussed, you are always doing what everyone would want you to do for the programme.

“As my colleague said before – I really do want you to leave this programme and go and make a difference.

“So don’t forget – it is not just the knowledge you need to retain, it is the spirit of the programme, which is that spirit of generosity, that spirit of humans coming together, sharing with each other and hopefully helping to make lives better in different places.

“Just remember – and you are welcome back here, any time.”

To find out more about supporting the Marshal Papworth Fund, please contact Sandra Lauridsen on 01733 961024 or email slauridsen@eastofengland.org.uk for more information. 

You can also visit the fund’s new website at