YOUTH IN AFRICA

Africa as a region has the highest percentage of youth in the world, with an estimated 420 million youth aged 15 to 35 (AfDB, 2018), and its share of rural youth is projected to rise to 37 percent by 2050 (IFAD, 2019a). Young people as producers and traders of food, as workers, innovators, and entrepreneurs, and as policy actors are already playing an important role in agrifood systems. Given the appropriate support and enabling environment, they can take advantage of new opportunities, develop innovative solutions, and contribute to building sustainable and resilient agrifood systems.

Young people face a range of age-specific vulnerabilities and difficulties, and those living in rural and underdeveloped areas face additional challenges, including fewer opportunities to access quality education and vocational training, lack of access to information, decent jobs, land, finance, and markets, exposure to hazardous work, and insufficient opportunities to participate in policy dialogues and other decision-making processes. They are also confronted with broader challenges in rural areas such as the lack of, or limited access to, basic infrastructure and services, internet connectivity, and environmental degradation.

Youth as a group is diverse. It is a dynamically changing group characterized not only by age but also by a set of intersectional dimensions, such as gender, education, wealth, ethnicity, health, and geographic location. Additionally, it is important to recognize that young people are more likely than adults to migrate (UN, 2019b) and their life course often includes periods of mobility and migration, which has an impact on their level of engagement in agriculture and food systems over time

TRENDS SHAPING EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES IN THE AGRIFOOD SYSTEMS IN AFRICA

Changing consumption patterns.

The growing population is projected to triple domestic food demand in sub-Saharan Africa by 2050 (International Institute for Environment and Development, n.d.), and bring about changes in food consumption patterns. The net food imports that are expected to increase to respond to this demand could be offset by increased African production which, in turn, presents opportunities to create decent employment for youth in the broader agrifood system. Data from the 2018 OECD-Sahel and West Africa Club (Allen, Heinrigs, and Heo, 2018) forecast the creation of 32 million new jobs in the agri-food sector up to 2025 in West Africa, along with an increase in the share of off-farm jobs.

Similar findings were also found for Eastern and Southern Africa. In addition, the African Continental Free Trade Area is expected to facilitate regional trade and contribute to the creation of jobs for young people, particularly in the agriculture sector. Expansion of automation and digital technologies. Technologies hold the potential to transform the future of African farming, making it more attractive and profitable, less burdensome, and more closely tied to markets and consumers. In 2018, almost 50 percent of the population of Africa owned a mobile phone (GSMA, 2017), with young people being the largest group using cell phones and apps.

The impacts on young people can be life-changing in such areas as education, extension services, social networking, job search, and financial services. The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the pace of digitalization and innovation, but it has also exposed existing digital divides. Capturing the potential benefits of automation and digital revolution and reducing the digital divide for youth requires tailored support and new investment in skills development, energy access, and connectivity.