Policy highlights:
- While youth will make up an increasingly large part of the population (14% of 9 billion by 2050), their employment opportunities remain limited and of poor quality. The agriculture sector has the potential to provide productive livelihood opportunities for youth.
- However, to exploit this potential, obstacles faced by young people need to be addressed. These include: 1) insufficient access to knowledge, information and education; 2) limited access to land; 3) inadequate access to financial services; 4) difficulties accessing green jobs; 5) limited access to markets; and 6) limited involvement in policy dialogue.
- Policy interventions should focus on: 1) building (the right) skills, and increasing access to education, especially for young women; 2) facilitating access to land, for instance, through amending inheritance laws or providing loans and leases; 3) promoting financial products catered to youth, such as start-up funding opportunities and informal savings clubs; 4) improving access to market information, for instance, by facilitating youth producers groups; 5) engaging youth in the policy-making process.
