Status of Youth in Agrifood Systems
Source: Down to Earth
GS II: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation
Overview
- News in Brief
- About the Status of Youth in Agrifood Systems
Why in the News?
FAO released the Status of Youth in Agrifood Systems report
News in Brief
- The Status of Youth in Agrifood Systems released on July 3, 2025 noted that more than 20 per cent of the world’s 1.3 billion young people were currently not in employment, education or training (NEET).
- Tackling this unemployment, particularly among 20-24-year-olds, could generate a 1.4 per cent boost in global gross domestic product (GDP), with about 45 per cent of that increase driven by increased youth participation in agrifood systems.
- As global youth unemployment reaches alarming levels, a new report from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations has pointed to agrifood systems for eliminating unemployment among individuals aged 15-24 years.
About the Status of Youth in Agrifood Systems
- Share of working youth in agrifood systems fell from 54% (2005) to 44%, despite high dependence in low-income countries.
- Over 20% of global youth (aged 15–24) are not in employment, education, or training; women are twice as likely to be affected.
- Eliminating youth NEET status, especially among 20–24-year-olds, could raise global GDP by 1.4% (~$1.5 trillion) — nearly 45% of it via agrifood systems.
- 54% of youth now live in urban areas; rural youth form only 5% in industrial agrifood systems — signalling future labour shortages in agriculture.
- Around 395 million rural youth live in areas likely to face declining agricultural productivity due to extreme weather and climate stress.
- 85 per cent of global youth lived in low- and lower-middle-income countries, where agrifood systems were essential for livelihoods.
- Global food insecurity among youth has increased from 16.7% to 24.4% (2014–2023), especially in Africa and crisis-affected regions.
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