Africa: Landless and Locked Out – Young Farmers Struggle for a Future

Africa: Landless and Locked Out – Young Farmers Struggle for a Future


Agricultural land is more than just a resource to produce food – for many older adults around the world, a land deed is the only safety net they have as they enter their old age. As a result, they hold onto it tightly.

However, this creates challenges by limiting land access for the next generation and diminishing their voice in agricultural policymaking. Without land assets, young people struggle to secure the resources needed to become agricultural producers themselves.

Between 2005 and 2021, the number of youth employed in agrifood jobs declined by 10 per cent, prompting concerns for food production worldwide.

This is the challenge, examined by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)’s inaugural report on youth in agrifood systems examines. Released on Thursday, the report offers insights into the status of youth producers and the challenges they face.

“Because youth are the next generation of producers, consumers, processors of food, service providers, it is really important to understand how they can benefit from and contribute to agrifood systems,” said Lauren Phillips, deputy director of rural transformation and gender equality at FAO.

Key agents of change

With over 1.3 billion people worldwide between the ages of 15-24 – and 46 per cent of them living in rural areas – youth can be “key agents of change” for the agrifood sector, which is responsible for producing, processing and transporting the food that sustains the world.

Agrifood systems currently employ 44 per cent of working youth, especially in low- and lower-middle income countries where 85 per cent of the world’s youth in that age range reside.

However, over 20 per cent of youth are not in formal employment, education or training, meaning that their potential contribution agrifood and other economic sectors is underutilized.

Ending worldwide unemployment for these young people could generate $1.5 trillion for the global GDP, $670 billion of which would come from the agrifood sector alone.

“Young people can drive economic transformation and global prosperity,” said QU Dongyu, Director-General of FAO.

Vulnerable jobs with low wages

While youth are “key agents of change” for the agrifood sector and the global economy writ large according to the report, they also face many challenges in realizing this potential.