The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations released a report titled “The Status of Youth in Agrifood Systems”, highlighting the role of agrifood systems in addressing youth unemployment and transforming food security.
Key Highlights from the Report
- Nearly 85% of global youth live in low- and lower-middle-income countries, where agrifood systems are essential for livelihoods.
| An agrifood system refers to the complete chain of activities involved in producing, processing, distributing, and consuming food. It covers agriculture, food supply chains, and the social and economic factors that shape food choices, with the goal of ensuring sustainable and fair access to nutritious food for all. |
- Global Youth Unemployment: Over 20% of the world’s 1.3 billion youth (aged 15–24) are currently not in employment, education or training (NEET).
- Youth unemployment is especially high among 20–24-year-olds.
- Youth Participation in Agrifood Systems:
- 44% of working youth globally are engaged in agrifood systems, compared to 38% of working adults.
- This participation has declined from 54% in 2005 to current levels.
- The global average masks variation: 82% of working youth are in agrifood systems in protracted crisis contexts, while only 23% are involved in industrial agrifood systems.
| A protracted crisis in the agrifood system refers to a prolonged situation where a significant portion of the population faces persistent vulnerability to hunger, disease, and disruptions to their livelihoods. |
- Warning of Labour Shortage:
- 54% of youth live in urban areas, with high concentrations in Eastern Asia.
- Rural youth make up just 5% of the population in industrial agrifood systems, signaling a potential labour shortage.
- Governments are urged to make agriculture more attractive for youth to reverse this trend.
- Geographic and Socioeconomic Focus:
- Nearly 85% of global youth live in low- and lower-middle-income countries, where agrifood systems are vital for livelihoods.
- Despite this, food insecurity among youth rose from 16.7% (2014–16) to 24.4% (2021–23), especially affecting youth in Africa.
- Climate Threats: An estimated 395 million rural youth live in regions expected to see declines in agricultural productivity due to climate shocks, especially in sub-Saharan Africa and traditional agrifood systems.
Strategies for Youth Empowerment
The report proposes a three-pronged strategy to overcome challenges and harness opportunities:
- Inquire More: Close knowledge and data gaps, and strengthen the evidence base for youth-inclusive agrifood systems.
- Include More: Amplify youth voices in policy-making and decision processes.
- Invest More: Promote targeted investments to expand youth economic opportunities and empower their agency.
Recommended Interventions
- Expanding Economic Opportunities: Equip youth with skills and resources for on- and off-farm roles.
- Investing in Modernization: Upgrade rural infrastructure and make agrifood careers more appealing.
- Facilitating Access to Resources: Provide youth-focused land and credit schemes.
- Promoting Orderly Youth Migration: Enable safe, youth-responsive migration to address labour gaps.
- Enhancing Digital Access: Improve digital connectivity to help youth modernize agriculture and access markets.
FAO’s Call to Action
- The report is a “timely and evidence-based assessment” of how agrifood systems can provide decent jobs and food security for youth.
- FAO Director-General QU Dongyu emphasized that empowered youth can act as catalysts for transforming agrifood systems globally.
Government Initiatives for sustainable Agrifood system
- PM Kisan Sampada Yojana: Supports setting up food processing units near farms, offering grants of 35–50% of project cost for cold storage, packaging, warehousing, etc.
- Mega Food Park Scheme: Provides financial assistance (up to ₹50 crore) for integrated food processing zones with shared infrastructure like storage, testing labs, and packaging units.
- Operation Greens: Focuses on value chain development for tomato, onion, and potato crops, offering up to 50% grant-in-aid for post-harvest infrastructure.
- PM Formalization of Micro Food Processing Enterprises (PM-FME): Targets micro food businesses with a 35% subsidy (up to ₹10 lakh) for units involved in local-level processing like spice packaging and pickle making.
- Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme: It aims to boost food exports, generate 2.5 lakh jobs, and promote global Indian food brands through capacity expansion incentives.
Food and Agriculture Organisation
- Established: 1945; a specialized agency of the United Nations leading global efforts to end hunger (aligns with SDG 2).
- Headquarters: Rome, Italy.
- Membership: 195 (194 countries + European Union), including India.
- Mandate: Coordinates with governments and technical bodies on agriculture, forestry, fisheries, and land and water resource development.
- Funding: Entirely funded by contributions from member nations.
- Relief Operations: FAO does not directly handle food relief in conflict or crisis situations — these are managed by the World Food Programme (WFP).
- Key Reports:
- The State of the World’s Forests (SOFO)
- The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture (SOFIA)
- The State of Agricultural Commodity Markets (SOCO)
- The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI)
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