Dear All,
The report in the first look, appears to be well drafted, many congratulations! to all those engaged in preparing it. It indeed is a gigantic task given the huge diversity we have in matters of food production systems and youth engagements. It will be my pleasure to go through in minute details to be able to comment or give suggestions. I am not sure whether it is within the scope of this report or not, when we see-
1. Youth are more intersted in agri-value chains like processing and marketing of agriproduce than primary production, unlik old generation farmers who have been toiling in production activities leaving post harvest activites to middlemen, resulting in poor returns from farming.
2. Organic agriculture is attracting youths globally compared to conventional farming including in developing countries. Same is true with use of social media channels. The need is therefore, for engaging youths creatively so that their energies and potential can be harnessed for agricultural transformation in developing countries in particular.
3. Late passing on of land title in the name of children has implications in terms of late entry of youths into farming, consequently financing of innovative projects gets affected.
4. Youth if organize themselves into groups/clusters can pool up resources to do farm production, processing and marketing of produce to make farming profitable, for which they need skills including soft skills, technical guidance and hand holding.
Looking forward for intellectually stimulating discussion on the report.
Regards,
Mahesh Chander
Ms. jaya surya kumari manthena