For many young people growing up in Zambia’s peri-urban communities such as George, Mandevu and Chawama, the transition from school to employment is anything but straightforward. With limited job opportunities, financial barriers and few pathways into entrepreneurship, the promise of a better future can often feel out of reach. However, amid these challenges, a group of young people in Lusaka is demonstrating that the absence of opportunity does not have to mean the absence of potential.
Founded in October 2021 and officially registered in February 2022, Aim-Higher Youth Cooperative, commonly known as Aim Higher, emerged from the conviction that young people have the ability to become drivers of economic and social change when given the right opportunities and support.
Under the leadership of its founder and executive president, Friday Chamfya, the Lusaka-based cooperative brings together young people who share a vision of building sustainable livelihoods through entrepreneurship, leadership development and practical skills.
The work of Aim Higher particularly targets school leavers and aspiring entrepreneurs, many of whom face significant barriers to entering the formal labour market or establishing businesses of their own.
“We started Aim-Higher because we believe young people have enormous potential. What many lack are the opportunities, resources and practical skills to turn that potential into something that can sustain their livelihoods,” explained Chamfya.
Chamfya added that for the cooperative, entrepreneurship is not only about starting a business, but also about giving young people greater control over their economic futures, strengthening their confidence and creating opportunities that can extend beyond individual members to benefit their communities.
This ambition is reflected in the cooperative's guiding slogan, "Aiming High to Success."
Turning ambition into enterprise
One of the cooperative's most promising undertakings has been the development of its enterprise arm, Peanco General Dealers, an initiative designed to create income-generating opportunities while strengthening the organisation's long-term financial sustainability.
Through agro-processing activities, particularly peanut butter production, the cooperative is exploring how agriculture can become a pathway to entrepreneurship and economic participation for young people.
Peanco peanut butter produced by the cooperative. Photo credit: ZGF
This peanut butter production venture demonstrates the vast opportunities within Zambia’s agricultural value chain, where young entrepreneurs can create value not only through farming but also through processing, packaging, marketing, and the sale of agricultural products.
According to Chamfya, this progress has been made possible through the support of the Zambian Governance Foundation (ZGF).
“We have received support through partnerships, training opportunities, mentorship, networking and project funding by ZGF to improve our peanut butter production,” he explained.
This support is particularly important for emerging youth-led enterprises, as having a viable business idea is often only the first step. Transforming an idea into a sustainable and profitable venture requires access to financing, technical expertise, business development support, strong networks, and reliable markets. With the right support, young entrepreneurs are better positioned to overcome these challenges, grow their businesses, create jobs, and contribute to local economic development.
The difficult journey of building something from the ground up
Despite its ambitions and achievements, the cooperative’s journey has not been without challenges.
“One of our biggest challenges has been accessing financial resources, equipment and markets. We have the ideas and the determination, but turning those ideas into sustainable businesses requires support and opportunities,” Chamfya stated.
Maintaining consistent member participation while simultaneously strengthening the cooperative’s governance and operational systems has also required significant effort.
These challenges reflect a broader reality faced by many youth-led enterprises. While passion, innovation, and determination are essential ingredients for success, they are rarely sufficient on their own. Without adequate financing, technical support, business development services, and access to markets, even the most promising ventures can struggle to move beyond their early stages and achieve long-term sustainability.
For the cooperative, overcoming these obstacles has required creativity, collaboration, and resilience. Members contribute resources and time toward the cooperative’s operations, while the leadership actively seeks partnerships with government institutions, development organisations, and private sector actors to expand opportunities for growth.
Volunteer participation, capacity-building initiatives such as ZGF’s Entrepreneurship Train programme, and ongoing efforts to strengthen internal governance structures have also played a critical role in sustaining momentum and positioning the cooperative for long-term success. Through these combined efforts, the cooperative continues to build a stronger foundation for growth, job creation, and community development.
Importantly, the establishment of Peanco General Dealers represents an effort to address one of the most persistent challenges facing community-based organisations: dependence on external funding.
“We do not want to depend entirely on external funding to keep our cooperative running. Through Peanco General Dealers, we are working towards building our own sources of income and creating something that can sustain itself in the long term,” Chamfya said.
By developing its own income-generating activities, the cooperative hopes to gradually build a more sustainable foundation for its work.
More than a business, a platform for young people
Although enterprise development is an important part of Aim Higher Youth Cooperative’s work, its ambitions extend beyond income generation.
Since its establishment, the cooperative has engaged young people in leadership development, entrepreneurship training, skills development and initiatives aimed at improving access to employment and economic opportunities.
It has also implemented a climate change mitigation and adaptation resilience project, recognising that young people's livelihoods are increasingly shaped by environmental challenges.
Through participation in national and international youth development and entrepreneurship initiatives, Aim Higher has continued to build relationships and create opportunities for learning, exposure and collaboration.
These experiences are helping the cooperative strengthen its institutional capacity while expanding the possibilities available to its members.
Building a future that can sustain itself
Looking ahead, Aim Higher hopes to expand its entrepreneurship programmes, increase its production capacity and establish stronger connections to markets.
Scaling up Peanco General Dealers is among its key priorities, with a particular focus on strengthening agro-processing activities and creating more income-generating and employment opportunities for young people.
The cooperative also aims to strengthen and expand its partnerships with government institutions, financial service providers, development organisations, and private sector actors to unlock new opportunities for growth and impact.
Its long-term vision is to become a sustainable, youth-led institution that empowers young people across Zambia through entrepreneurship, agriculture, leadership development, climate action, and skills training.
Realising this vision will require sustained investment, technical assistance, and greater access to markets, finance, and business opportunities. Yet the cooperative’s journey already highlights an important lesson: when support is directed towards initiatives conceived and driven by young people themselves, the potential for meaningful and lasting change is significantly enhanced.
When young people are organised, equipped with practical skills, and connected to resources and opportunities, they are better positioned to transform innovative ideas into viable enterprises, create jobs, and contribute to local economic development.
For organisations such as ZGF, supporting youth-led initiatives goes beyond the provision of financial resources. It involves recognising the talent, creativity, and determination that already exist within communities and helping to create an enabling environment in which that potential can flourish.
The story of Aim-Higher Youth Cooperative is still being written. While significant challenges remain in building a sustainable youth-led enterprise, the cooperative’s progress to date demonstrates what can be achieved when young people unite around a shared vision. From registering a formal cooperative to establishing a peanut butter production venture, its members are creating practical pathways for economic empowerment and community development.
In communities where unemployment and limited economic opportunities often leave young people feeling excluded from economic progress, initiatives such as Aim-Higher Youth Cooperative offer a powerful alternative. They demonstrate that young people can be more than beneficiaries of development programmes; they can be entrepreneurs, job creators, innovators, and active contributors to the growth and resilience of their communities.
Perhaps the most important measure of the cooperative’s success will not be the volume of peanut butter produced or the number of businesses established. Rather, it will be reflected in the opportunities created for young people to build confidence, develop their talents, and realise their potential. In doing so, the cooperative is helping to shape a future in which young people are active agents of change, capable of transforming not only their own lives but also the communities around them.
To find out more about how you can support Aim Higher Youth Cooperative, please feel free to reach out to them via aimhigheryouth@gmail.com
