Investing in farmers – what is known as ‘agriculture human capital’ – is crucial to addressing challenges facing our global agri-food systems, from sustainably feeding the world’s growing population with food that is safe, healthy and nutritious to finding innovative solutions for more resilient and climate-smart agriculture. Investing in farmers is just as important as investing in infrastructure and other physical capital. Yet less than 3 percent of global agriculture development finance between 2015 and 2018 was invested specifically in strengthening the skills and capacities of agricultural producers. How do you invest in building the human capital of agricultural producers? What factors make that investment successful? The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and IFPRI, with support from PIM, sought answers to these and other questions in their joint global study. This report provides a synthesis of that study’s findings. It looks at recent trends, including shifts in financing and increased digitalisation. It also provides six recommendations to governments, international financial institutions (IFIs) and the private sector on investing in developing the human capital of agricultural producers, including women and youth.