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A case study of Nigerian Rural Youth.

By John Uzeshi Peter

Programme Manager, Improving Rural Agricultural Production in Kaduna State, Nigeria.

An NGO trying to identify challenges faced by Kaduna state, rural farmers and looking for a way of solving them.

Agriculture is important to the development of any nation. Rural youth are the future of agricultural production. Their engagement today determines how much food we will produce in the future. Their actions will also define how food production impacts the environment.

"As long as young people aren't engaged in the sector, it will continue to suffer. As long as we will try make things for the youth without engaging them, nothing will change" Aliness Mumba, South Africa.

In Nigeria, the attitude of youth towards agriculture as a profession has been reported to be negative and this is partly responsible for the low level of agricultural production in the country. However in Nigeria some of the challenges face by rural youth aged 15 - 17 neglecting the agricultural sector includes:

• Herdmen and farmers clashes: Normadic livestock farmers often clash with crop farmers, in Nigeria many lives has been lost many properties destroy as a result of the clashes. Use crop farmers claim that the Normadic livestock farmers allow their livestock to invade on the crop farms feeding and destroying the crops planted, as that result to violence and many times killing and destruction of property.
• Poverty: In today Nigeria, one of the Major Problems of Food Production is Poverty. On the other hand, one of the Simplest and a Doubtless Truth that you can easily Know about Nigeria is the fact that over 75% of Her Rural Dwellers are Full-time Farmers. But to me, Nigerians honestly are not really lacking Food. What they really lack is the money to buy the Food; the money to produce the food; and, or even the money to Produce small piece of land to grow the food.
• Illiteracy: The greatest number of Dedicated full time farmers in Nigeria can neither Read nor Write. The Local Farmers there are even as Uninformed as they lack Modern Agricultural Education.
• Use of manual farm tools/Methods: An average Nigeria farmer is still making use of only the same Out-dated Manual Farm Tools like Cutlass and hoes their fore-fathers used since many Centuries ago. Their use of Archaic and out dated tools and techniques, constitutes a very great set back in the country food and agricultural out puts.
• Lack of social amenities: The lack of social amenities like road, water, electricity, hospitals etc has been a course of concern as the rural farming communities in Nigeria neither good road nor hygiene drinking water as people still fetch drinking water from the streams, little wonder, then that water borne diseases are still causing premature deaths in the countryside. And because of lack of good road farmers go through hell to evacuate their farm produce to the market.
• Lack of food storage and processing facilities: Many Delicious and Juicy Fruits, Vegetables, and cash crops are largely Produced from Nigeria's Local Farming Communities. But do you know that a very great Percentage of these Delicious Organic Farm Produce often get Damaged and, or Wasted before they reach their Final Consumers? In this kind of situation, one of the Major Problems that is facing the Helpless Local Farmers here, is the lack of Adequate Food Storage or Processing Facilities.
• Lack of industries: Another point is the near-total absence of industries, small, medium or large scale. Absence of industries and lack of social amenities are the main reasons why the youth abandoned the villages in search of livelihood in the urban centres. The youth are mostly poor and do not have support from the government and, or donor agencies in either training, supply of farming materials not to talk about access to loan.

With all this challenges facing the rural youth aged 15 - 17, it is better and important to motivate the youth to develop interest in farming and rural life through vocational and teaching of agriculture from the grassroots in schools so that they will be able to farm on their own. Youth are the greatest assets that any Nation can have, not only that they are legitimately and actually the greatest investment for a country's development, Fariude (1999) define youth as the time a person's latent powers and attributes are developed to their highest potential, when intellect is at its sharpest and energy is at it promising. Fadeyomi (1998) Observed that viable rural development could not be achieved when there is sustained growth in rural income and standards of living which could be brought about primarily from agriculture.

To address the challenges face by rural youth aged 15 - 17 can include:

• The strengthening of extension service to work close with the rural youth farmers to improve their productivity through active participation in their farming activities.
• The rural youth should be empowered to actively engage into full time agricultural production rather than seasonal farmers.
• Agricultural vocational centres should be establish in rural communities to educate the youth on knowledge of modern farming and preparing to access a decent work.
• The Governments and, or stakeholders provide modern machines and equipment to the rural farmers of hiring as most of the rural farmers can not be able to purchase those machines considering the cost.
• The Governments and, or stakeholders should provide the rural areas with social amenities. Lack of social amenities makes living in the rural areas difficult and unattractive to the youth.
• The Governments and, or stakeholders should provide processing and storage facilities so as to reduce the waste and damage of fruits and crops before reaching consumers.
• Small and medium scale industries should be sited in the rural areas so as the rural youth will gain knowledge of both farming and working to have their own someday.

The policies and programmes to overcome this challenges is to fully empower the rural youth farmers, Government should ensure equal access to economic opportunities. It is however up to each citizen to take advantage of them or ignore them.

The principle objectives of citizen economic empowerment should be expansion of income and employment, generating activities for as many people as possible, without sacrificing efficiency.

 Therefore, economic empowerment strategies should generally include:

• Financial intervention; in order to assist rural youth farmers.
• Enterprise development for citizens (increase access to skills, business and management training and improved production technologies).
• Training and education consistent with skill requirements in the economy.
• The Governments and, or stakeholders should pursue policies that could increase access to loans for financing agricultural production by youth who are enterprising.

The most binding capacity constraints when evaluating policies and programmes are:

• Lack of continuity of Government policies and programmes.
• Lack of direct policies in addressing the challenges faced by farmers.
• Harvest lost and storage lost has been old as agriculture itself but farmer are still face with the challenge will the Governments and, or stakeholders create ways of dealing with that challenge and many other face by rural farmers?

The education and vocational training can be improve in the rural areas to support adolescents to productively engage in agriculture through demonstration farms, where the youth will be encourage to have a small farms where they will grow crops or rear animals which will be supervise by their teacher and, or vocational trainers, like a concept I want to develop that is call, "Little Garden today, Big Forest tomorrow" which means, if a child/adolescent will be encourage to start farming at early age will grow to have Big farm in the future.

The most effective approach should be that the both the National, State and Local Governments and, or stakeholders should encourage the rural youth aged 15 - 17 by providing them support like:

• Improve seeds and breeds.
• Provision of soft loans and grants.
• Provide qualitative extension service.
• Subsidise farming materials like the fertilizer, herbicides, pesticides etcetera.
• Provide a market for their goods and services.
• Address the the issues of conflict of Crops farmers and the herdmen.
• Improve their knowledge information and education.
• Create a good and easy access to land.
• Encourage the rural youth to join or create association or cooperative.
• Provide processing and storage facilities or buy off access crops produce by the Farmers at every harvest season.
• The Governments should get young people involve at all level of the value chain to boost their opportunities.

Have a fruitful discussion.

John Uzeshi Peter

For Improving Rural Agricultural Production in Kaduna State Nigeria.

Hello,

My contribution to the E-consultation on youth feeding the future is written below.

Youth – feeding the future: Addressing the challenges faced by rural youth aged 15 to 17 in preparing for and accessing decent work

Many youths aged 15 – 17 years who live in rural areas of Nigeria are in their final years of senior secondary school (high school) or have finished with secondary school education. Hence for many, their minds are on the next step to take in life; whether to further their education at tertiary level, learn a trade, or get married (mostly for the girls). Many are already looking forward to leaving their villages to move to the towns and cities where they hope to improve their living conditions and earn good money. They see the towns and cities as having better job opportunities.

In order to involve this group of young people in agriculture in their villages, that is, to convince them to remain in rural parts to pursue agriculture, it is important that these young people see a future for them in agriculture. That is, by becoming farmers, they can take care of themselves and their dependents and not lose out on what their counterparts in urban areas have.

Currently many young Nigerians perceive agriculture to be an occupation of poor people and which demands so much strenuous work.

This perception combined with limited/dysfunctional infrastructure and social amenities including lack of clean drinking water, noon-functional poor health facilities and low manpower, protracted power outages, bad internal roads and limited recreational facilities, results in negative attitude towards pursuing a career in agriculture. To accomplish the objective of changing this perception and persuading youths to take up agriculture, would require participation of several participants including government at all levels, ministries of agriculture, education and youth development, and private organisations.

In preparing the document for the FAO e-consultancy, a 17-year old girl was asked if she would like to remain in the village as a farmer. Her not surprising response was no and the reasons she gave were:

 Less exposure arising from limited ICT (mobile and internet penetration), supply of electricity, and social network (because villages are not metropolitan which allows for meeting and learning from people of various cultures and backgrounds).

 Job opportunities are less in the villages and those available are not satisfying and fulfilling.

 Agricultural practices in the village are still old fashioned and tedious due to non-availability of affordable suitable machinery.

 General poor state of health, water supply, power and road infrastructure in villages.

The young girl was then asked what could be done to convince her to remain in the village as a farmer. She mentioned the following:

 Enlightenment on the prospects of agriculture in Nigeria including vocational training, and professional courses on modern agricultural practices.

 Functional health and social infrastructure including mobile and internet penetration.

 Ready market for sale of agriculture produce.

In view of the foregoing, a programme/project which significantly addresses the aforementioned issues, would contribute to changing the perception about agriculture in rural places and willingness of young people to take it up. One such programme/project could be to set up ‘impact camps’ in rural area. For a start, the pilot communities should be selected based on economic and social assessments, amongst other criteria. The ‘impact camps’ should be a public private partnership (PPP) arrangement. The camps should have facilities that provide access to internet (through telecom operators), provide professional courses on modern agriculture including climate- smart practices, as well as module on basic reading and writing, training on accessing local, regional, international finance and markets, and offer programmes that reward sound agricultural practices and yield.

Basically, the camps would be local hubs for promoting agriculture (and economic) ecosystems and sustainable livelihoods in each community. It is very likely that when such ecosystem has formed, development in terms of social infrastructure would naturally be attracted to these areas.

It is recommended that youths from their first year in junior secondary school (say, from 11 years) and those that have completed secondary school (say, up to 20 years) are part of the programme/project. Catching youths as young as 11 years would make it easier for them to ‘see a future’ for themselves in agriculture by the time they are 15 – 17 years and near completion or have completed school. Extending the programme to people 18 – 20 years old makes it easier for transitioning of the target group (15 – 17 years) to adult life as modern farmers.

Best regards,

Jessy Hims.

English translation below

CONTRIBUTION DE MR CHEIKH FALL PRESIDENT DU COMITE INTERSYNDICAL DE LUTTE CONTRE LES PIRES FORMES DE TRAVAIL DES ENFANTS AU SENEGAL

Question: Sur la base de votre expérience, quels sont les enjeux spécifiques  auxquels  sont confrontés  les jeunes de 15 à 17 ans des zones rurales dans le secteur agricole et activités afférentes?

Les enjeux sont nombreux on peut citer:

1) La compréhension du phénomène

2) La volonté politique de l’ETAT

3) L'organisation des populations de la zone d’intervention en groupes homogènes capables de répondre à la lutte contre ce phénomène

4) Le retrait de la cible (6-16 ans ) et l’insertion à l’école

5) L’alphabétisation de la cible (14-17 ans)n’ayant pas reçu la formation initiale formelle

6) La  préformation et la formation professionnelle dans les métiers de l’agriculture et activités afférentes de la cible (15-17 ans)

7) La formation diplômant ou certifiant

8) L’accès aux marchés ,au financement et à la terre de la cible (17-24 ans)

Question: Comment les politiques et programmes peuvent ils contribuer à relever les enjeux auxquels sont confrontés  les jeunes des zones rurales, de la manière la plus efficaces et économique possible? Veuillez nous communiquer des exemples pertinents et les leçons que vous avez tirés de votre expérience.

Pour relever les défis auxquels sont confrontés les jeunes du monde rural il faut s’appuyer aux politiques de l’ETAT sénégalais dans l’agriculture et les structures financières qui accompagnent les acteurs dans ce secteur.

Le gouvernement du SENEGAL en partenariat avec les organisations des EMPLOYEURS, organise annuellement un forum sur l’emploi des jeunes pour ouvrir des perspectives d’emplois, de débouchés et orienter vers l’obtention d’emplois. Mais cette rencontre intéresse singulièrement les jeunes diplômés habitants résidents en milieu urbain. Pour répondre aux besoins des jeunes en zones rurales de telles initiatives pertinentes doivent être décentralisées.

EXAMPLE  du PAFNA: Projet d’Alphabétisation et de Formation des Jeunes Non Alphabétisés de la région de SAINT LOUIS au Nord du Sénégal

-Le projet avait une participative qui consistait à organiser les populations et les sensibiliser sur la problématique

-Puis un diagnostic participatif a été réalisé sur les besoins des jeunes ciblés à travers un forum inter villageois

-Les besoins ont été recensés et des métiers alternatifs et sous métiers dans l’agriculture  ont été proposés (conducteurs d’engins tracteurs, réparateurs de moto pompe, mécaniciens de tracteurs et d’engins agricoles, soudeurs, compostage…)

-Les cours d’alphabétisation et de formation se sont déroulés pendant 2 ans

Sur les 100 jeunes ciblés de 14 à 17 ans, 30 ont réussi à une formation qualifiante mais n'ont eu d’insertion pour un emploi. De plus la formation n’était pas certificative pour prétendre un emploi dans les sociétés de la place.

Question: Quelles sont les principales contraintes de capacités que vous rencontrez ou que votre institution rencontre pour concevoir, mettre en œuvre évaluer les politiques et programmes destinés à résoudre les problèmes qui touchent les jeunes de moins de 18 ans? Quelles lacunes en matière de données en ce qui concerne les problèmes  les plus fréquents qui touchent à l’emploi et des moyens d’existence des jeunes des zones rurales?

1. L’une des  contraintes majeures est la connaissance qualitative et quantitative du phénomène dans la zone d’intervention. Pour ce faire il faut nécessairement une cartographie du phénomène dans la zone ciblée.
2. L’absence de collaboration initiale et de partenariat avec les entreprises et sociétés  locales pour déterminer l’offre et la demande en matière d’emplois. Pour ce faire les  sociétés et entreprises locales doivent élaborer une politique annuelle de recrutement pour créer l’émulation.
3. La durée d’un projet (2 à 3 ans).L’intervention doit être sous forme de programme pour une durée d’intervention capable d’installer des changements de comportement durables.
4. Le rôle de l’ETAT doit être souple pour jouer un rôle de supervision et d’orientation dans le but d’une bonne adéquation des résultats de l’intervention avec les politiques nationaux et internationaux.
5. Harmoniser les systèmes d’évaluation  en adoptant le GAAR (gestion des activités axée sur les résultats).

Question: Comment améliorer l’éducation et la formation professionnelle dans les zones rurales de façon à aider les adolescents et les jeunes des zones rurales à participer de façon productive aux activités agricoles et afférentes? Quelles sont les compétences et soutien dont ils ont besoin? Comment se produit la transition entre  l’école et le travail pour les jeunes de 15 à 17 ans des zones rurales et quels sont les meilleurs moyens de soutenir les jeunes des zones rurales au cours de cette transition?

1. Mettre en place un curriculum de formation / apprentissage en collaboration avec le Ministère de la formation professionnelle, le Ministère de l’éducation nationale et le Ministère de l’enseignement supérieur.
2. Mettre en place un centre de formation des métiers  ou redynamiser ou réorienter les centres existants.
3. Faire de la RSE (Responsabilité Sociétale des Entreprises) une réalité pour prendre en charge la sensibilisation en matière de santé et renforcer les moyens des centres de formation et l’environnement dans les zones d’intervention.
4. Elaborer des référentiels de métiers (exemples : référentiel des métiers en arboriculture fruitière, en aviculture bio, compostage, en pépiniériste…).
5. Systématiser l’approche par les compétences (APC) comme méthode pédagogique d’enseignement/apprentissage avec une certification en fin de cycles de formation.
6. Capaciter les jeunes (15 -24 ans) sur l’employabilité avec comme support pédagogique le manuel de l’OIT et l’OIM. 
7. Appuyer les familles des jeunes ciblés en AGR (Activités Génératrices de Revenus).

Question: Quelles sont les approches les plus efficaces pour surmonter les difficultés additionnelles que les jeunes de moins de 18 ans des zones rurales rencontrent pour avoir accès à des emplois décents y compris les emplois verts  (décents) ou pour lancer leurs propres entreprises?

Il faut:

1. Une approche participative intégrée et holistique pour une telle intervention à la fois multidimensionnelle et multisectorielle.
2. Mettre en place un comité intersectoriel dynamique et fonctionnel et un dispositif de suivi /évaluation de la mise en œuvre.
3. Intégrer de manière précoce les jeunes (16-18 ans) dans les organisations de producteurs afin de maîtriser le processus de financement, d’accès et d’exploitation du marché.
4. Créer des activités à haute intensité de main d’œuvre dans les zones d’intervention (exploitation du jujubier GOLA, arboriculture fruitière, pâturages marchands, élevage intensif de bovins ovins et caprins….).

Question: Based on your experience, what are the specific challenges rural youth aged 15-17 face (different from those over 18) in making a (current or future) living in agriculture and related activities?

The issues are many, one could name:

  1) understanding of the phenomenon; 2) the political will of the State; 3) the organization of the population of areas of intervention in homogeneous groups able to respond to the fight against this phenomenon; 4) the withdrawal of the target group (6-16 years old) and their placement in schools; 5) literacy of the target group (14-17 years old) that have not received initial formal training; 6) pre-training and professional training in the skills of agriculture and related activities of the target age (15-17 years old); 7) diploma or certificate training; 8) access to markets, financing and land of the target group (17-24 years old).

Question:  How can policies and programmes overcome the challenges faced by rural youth in a cost-effective manner? If they target older youth, how could we apply them to support those under 18?  Please share relevant examples and lessons from your experience.

To overcome the challenges faced by rural youth it is necessary to rely on the agricultural policies of the Senegalese State and on the financing structures which are introduced by the actors in this sector.

The government of Senegal in partnership with employers’ organizations arranges every year a forum on employment for the youth, to open up their views on employment, on opportunities and guide them towards getting work. But this meeting is only of interest to the youth with diplomas living in urban areas. To answer to the needs of rural youth such relevant initiatives must be decentralized.

EXAMPLE of PAFNA: Projet d’Alphabétisation et de Formation des Jeunes Non Alphabétisés [Literacy and training program of young people without literacy skills] in the SAINT LOUIS region in the North of Senegal.

- The project had a participative role which consisted in organizing the population and making them aware of the problems.

- Then a participative diagnosis was carried out regarding the needs of the target youth through a forum between the villages.

- The needs were inventoried and alternative skills and sub-skills in agriculture were proposed (tractor drivers, pump maintenance engineers, mechanics for tractors and farm machinery, welders, composting ...)

- The literacy and training courses took place over 2 years

Out of the 100 youth targeted between 14-17 years old, 30 of them successfully completed qualifying training but did not find work. Furthermore, the training did not lead to certification for gaining a job in local companies.

Question: What are the most binding capacity constraints that you or your institution/organization encounter when designing, implementing and evaluating policies and programmes aiming to address the issues affecting rural youth under the age of 18?  What are the data gaps regarding the challenges affecting rural youth employment and livelihoods that you periodically encounter?  

1. One of the major constraints is the qualitative and quantitative understanding of the phenomenon in the area of intervention. To resolve it, a mapping of the phenomenon in the target area is required.
2. The absence of initial collaboration and partnership with local enterprises and companies to determine the supply and demand in terms of jobs. To achieve this, the local societies and enterprises should draw up an annual recruitment policy to create competition.
   1. The duration of a project (2-3 years).  The intervention should be in the form of a program for an intervention of sufficient duration, to create long lasting behavioral changes.
3. The role of the State should be flexible in order to play a supervisory and guiding role with the aim of a good adaptation of the results of intervention to national and international policies.
4. Harmonize the assessment systems by adopting a results-based management of activities.

Question:  How can education and vocational training in rural areas be improved to support rural adolescents and youth to productively engage in agriculture or related activities?  What are the skills and support they need?  What does the school-to-work transition for rural youth aged 15-17 look like and what works to effectively support rural youth during this transition?

1. Establish a curriculum for training /apprenticeship in collaboration with the Ministry of professional training and the Ministry of national education and the Ministry of higher education
2. Establish a technical skills training center or reinvigorate or re orientate the existing centers
3. Make corporate social responsibility a reality to take charge of awareness dissemination in  matters of health and to reinforce the resources of the centers for training and the environment in the  areas of intervention
4. Devise trades databases (example: trades references on fruit arboculture, aviculture, bio-composting, seedlings ...)
5. Systematize the competences approach as the teaching method for instruction/apprenticeship with a certificate at the end of the training cycle
6. Give youth (15-24 years old) training on employability using as a teaching aid the ILO and the IOM  manual
7. Support the families of the targeted youth with income generating activities

Question: What approaches are most effective in overcoming the additional challenges rural youth under the age of 18 face in accessing decent jobs, including (decent) green jobs (e.g. skills mismatch, health and safety conditions, discrimination, exclusion) or becoming entrepreneurs (e.g. barriers in access to finance, producers organizations and markets)?

This needs:

1. A participative integrated and holistic approach for such a multidimensional and at the same time multi-sectorial intervention
2. Set up a dynamic and functional inter-sectorial committee and an apparatus for follow-up/assessment of the implementation.
3. Integrate the youth (16-18) early  into the producers organizations so that they know about the processes of financing, access and exploitation of the market
4. Create labor intensive activities in areas of intervention (jujube cultivation, fruit arboriculture, commercial pasturage, intensive breeding of sheep and goats, ...)

Comment received through Linkedin

Dear Sir/Madam,

The issue of youth is very critical especially for developing countries where population growth is in geometric progression while means of livelihood are dwindling. Recently, I have been undertaking youth labor market assessment in some rural areas of my country. I realized immense challenges of youth. Shortage of land, lack of access to modern inputs and advice, considering agriculture as backward and non-paying sector, lack of trade-able skills, etc., are just few of the challenges. When it comes to young girls, the situation is worse. Therefore, unless all the policy makers, development practitioners, donor agencies, etc., are all moving together to mitigate the situation, it is really worrisome.

English translation below

Apreciada Jacqueline, 

Este es un tema muy interesante el poder analizar sobre la juventud que tiene grandes retos de acceso a oportunidades en diferentes áreas como son educativas, economicas, sociales, equidad de género,entre otras. Por lo que considero sumamente importante continara el proceso de abogacia al momento en que se formulen políticas y reglamentaciones  en las áreas ante mencionadas que integren a este grupo etareo y que se crean sinergias con centros de formación y universidades que apoyen el proceso formativo de los jovenes, asimismo hacer abogacia con las instituciones gubernamentales y empresa privada para hacer un análisis más holistico de como poder crear condiciones que les brinde a los jovenes mayores oportunidades de crecimento personal y profesional. 

Gracias por esta oportunidad de comentar los articulos tan interesantes, como este. 

Saludes cordiales, 

Dear Jacqueline, 

This is a very interesting topic: discussing the challenges faced by rural youth in accessing educational, economic, social, or gender equality opportunities, among others. Supporting the formulation of related policies and regulations integrating this age group and building synergies with education centres and universities that endorse their educational process is of utmost importance. Furthermore, collaborating with government institutions and private companies in undertaking a more comprehensive analysis on how to create suitable conditions leading to better personal and professional growth opportunities for youth is also important.

Thank you for the opportunity of participating in such an interesting discussion.

Kind regards,

English translation below

Chers tous,

C'est avec grand intérêt et plaisir que je participe à cet échange sur les questions de la jeunesse et de l'emploi décent.

C'est un problème qui se pose avec acuité dans la plus part des pays en voie de développement où la jeunesse majoritairement rurale occupe une place importante dans la pyramide des ages de ces pays.

Pour relever les défis auxquels les jeunes sont confrontés dans les zones rurales , je pense qu'il faut que les politiques et les programmes à l'endroit de ces jeunes prennent compte de leurs besoins spécifiques (formation/appui-conseil, emploi rémunérateur, accès au foncier, accès au financement, accès à un logement, accès la protection sociale,paix et sécurité) surtout ceux de moins de 18 ans afin de les garantir un emploi décent.

Pour ce faire il faut entre autre:

• Programme d’Insertion des Jeunes sortants pour les moins de 14 ans
• Programme de formation professionnelle et technique pour es 15 - 17 ans
• Prise en compte des jeunes comme bénéficiaires et prestataires;
• Evaluer la proportion que représente les jeunes avant la formulation de ces programmes et politiques;
• Intégrer spécifiquement la question de la jeunesse dans les stratégies de formulation et de mise en oeuvre des projets
• Développer un cadre institutionnel favorable aux jeunes;
• Favoriser l’accès des jeunes femmes et hommes aux financements,
• Éliminer les contraintes à l’accès des jeunes à la terre ...

Les principales contraintes de capacités rencontrés dans nos institutions pour la conception et l'évaluation des politiques et programmes destinés à résoudre les problèmes des jeunes de moins de 18 ans des zones rurales sont entre autres:

• La majorité des activités ciblant les jeunes en milieu rural sont diffuses dans les activités des programmes/ projets de développement: C'est le cas au Niger du PECEA ( programme de promotion de la croissance économique dans l'Agriculture) et le PAPI (programme d'appui à l'irrigation) et le PADAD (coopération luxembourgeoise), chacun de ces programmes a dans son volet financement prévu de faciliter l'accès au crédit des jeunes et des femmes pour améliorer leurs conditions de vie.
• D'autre part, il faut que l'Etat s'affiche clairement dans la promotion de l'emploi des jeunes surtout ceux du milieu rural ce qui inciterait les partenaires à faire plus.

Pour améliorer l’éducation et la formation professionnelle dans les zones rurales il faudrait:

• Des programmes d'enseignement de qualité,
• Adapter les filières de la formation professionnelle aux besoins de l’économie nationale et du marché de travail,
• construction d’école,
• le recrutement et la formation de personnel enseignant, la prise en charge du personnel,
• l’allocation de fournitures scolaires,
• les cantines scolaires,
• la prise en charge des fournitures ou l’attribution de bourses scolaires aux filles scolarisées...

AMINA ABASS,

Niamey/Niger

Dear All

It is with great interest and pleasure that I participate in this exchange about the questions of youth and proper work.

It is a problem that is becoming more acute in most developing countries where youth, mainly from rural areas, occupies an important place in the age pyramid of these countries.

To relieve the challenges faced by the young in rural areas, I believe that it is necessary that the policies and programs with regard to these youth take into account their specific needs (training/counseling support, profitable work, access to land, access to financing, access to housing, access to social protection, peace and security) especially for those under the age of 18 in order to guarantee them proper employment.

To achieve this, the following, among others, are necessary:

• Insertion program of young school leavers of at least 14 years old;
• Professional and technical training program for the 15-17 year olds;
• Take into account the young as beneficiaries and providers;
• Assess the proportion represented by the youth before the development of these programs and policies;
• Specifically integrate the question of youth in the strategies of formulation and implementation of projects;
• To develop an institutional framework favorable to the youth;
• Promote the access of young women and men to funding;
• Eliminate the constraints on access to land of youth...

The main limitations in terms of capacity found in our institutions for the drawing up and assessment of policies and programs destined to solve the problems of people younger than 18 years old in rural areas are, among others:

• The majority of the activities targeted at the young in rural areas are spread among the activities of development programs/projects:  In Niger it is the case of PECEA (Programme the promotion de la croissance economique dans l’agriculture, [Program for the promotion of economic growth in agriculture]), PAPI (Programme d'appui a l'irrigation, [Support program for irrigation]) and PADAD (Cooperation Luxembourgeoise, [Cooperation Luxembourg]), each one of these programs has a financing component provided to facilitate access to loans for the youth and women, in order to improve their living conditions.
• On the other hand, the State should clearly publicize its promotion of work for the youth, especially those from a rural background, which would encourage partners to do more.

To improve education and professional training in rural areas requires:

• Quality teaching programs;  
• Adapting the professional training courses  to the needs of the national economy and of the labor market;
• Construction of schools;
• The recruitment and training of teaching personnel, and  the management of them;
• Assignment of educational supplies;
• School canteens;
• Taking  charge of school supplies or awarding school bursaries to girls attending school ...

CONTRIBUTION POSTED ON THE FSN FORUM IN EUROPE AND CENTRAL ASIA

RUSSIAN VERSION BELOW

Ogloblina Y., Chairperson of the Russian Union of Rural Youth, Russian Federation

80% of the students in agricultural universities are rural youth. However, unfortunately, these rural youth do not arrive to the agricultural universities with the dream of becoming vets, animal experts, or (agricultural) mechanics. They are in these universities because it is the only option they have, given the marks they obtained in the national examinations, and they intend to seek further (higher) education. After all, for most parents, the most important is that their children obtain higher education!

1.       Problem: limited career guidance in schools. We are confident that in order for students to choose an agricultural career consciously, organized vocational training is required, as well as more developed agro-education in schools in rural areas.

Moreover, the career guidance work should be directed not only to the students but also their parents and teachers. Rural students, who constantly hear comments such as “if you don’t study, on a farm tractor you will work”, may attach negative connotations to agricultural work.

That is why we are implementing a project of vocational guidance for rural youth students – ‘Choosing a Profession’.

We have analysed agricultural education in Samara, Belgorod, Orenburg, Kaluga, Irkutsk, Tyumen regions, the Republic of Kalmykia and the Perm Territory, and determined that the most effective action is based in the Orenburg region. There are classes for agricultural students held in different formats:

·       Elective courses on "introduction to agribusiness"

·       Distance learning using Internet (webinars)

·       Practical sessions including experiments, trainings, and excursions to farms of the region

At the end of the course, each student develops a business plan "My Business Plan", and then the students with the best projects are involved in the final conference of the agricultural education, where winners receive an award and invitation to further education more specialized.

It is necessary to extend this experience in Orenburg to all universities including agricultural education.  

1. Quality of practical training of students. Even if students choose to pursue agricultural education, it does not mean that they are easily employed. Companies are expecting highly skilled professionals. However, agricultural education and the industry are detached, resulting in a vicious cycle, educational institutions cannot prepare qualified specialists meeting the demand of the agroindustry.

In this case, there should be structures and mechanisms in place to establish cooperation amongst educational institutions and employers. Prospective employers should be actively involved in the education process, and many are willing to and are already doing so. However, educational institutions are not always prepared to collaborate with employers; they are slow in responding to change and often simply unable to fulfill the requirements of the employer. In some cases, employers do not want to even provide internships (professional placements) for students. 

With the vocational guidance project, we are raising the prestige of agricultural work, we are showing the modern high-tech equipment in enterprises, thereby motivating future employees. However, students are demotivated by agricultural work at university when they are using old equipment, or even studying only with books, and never engaging with the practical application of technology of their future jobs.

Students are seeking education about the production processes and field practice, therefore, it is necessary:

·         Determine the forms and mechanisms of collaboration between educational institutions and employers, strengthening the control of internships (professional placements) undertaken by students;

·         Strengthen the qualifications for teachers, to include training courses on agribusiness enterprises and services (such as manufacturers and distributors of agricultural machinery and equipment);

·         Increase resources (or tax mechanisms) to include in education practical training, for instance, seeds, fertilizers, chemicals, etc.

3. The ineffectiveness of targeted training.

It seems a great offer for students, to be guaranteed employment after graduation, trained on government budget (provision of stipend, place to study and an internship, and material for coursework and research).   

However, after 4-6 years as a student living in the city and having completed their degree, many wonder – is it worth to go back to work to the rural areas?

For instance, in the Novosibirsk region, for six years, the region failed to comply with its obligations of sending graduates to work in the agricultural sector, almost 400 graduates. Even though, In total, approximately a third of the students, received a diploma because their study was paid from the government budget. Such statistics are similar in almost all regions.

Another problem is that the new law on education provides targeted training only for enterprises that share ownership (social capital) with the state, such enterprises are very rare in the agricultural sector.

In this case, we think it is advisable to :

·         Amend the Education Act;

·         Strengthen the commitment of students and their parents to their obligations and liability, to comply with the terms of the contracts (given they receive government funding for their studies);

·         Introduce the practice of signing contracts (to control those who could reject the agreements otherwise) with the best students, enrolled on a budgetary basis.

All graduates, no matter if they are (funded) undergraduates, masters or bachelors, farmers, athletes, or doctors and teachers, are ready to go work in rural areas if their earnings are stable, the infrastructure is developed, there are opportunities to raise their children and also interesting activities for their leisure time.

Agricultural enterprises cannot address these needs and issues alone. It is the responsibility of local and regional authorities to train people in agricultural topics, people also must know what support programmes are available for their children in rural areas, they must also support people in accessing employment, and provide government support to improve housing conditions.  

If these issues are addressed, young people are more likely to pursue an agricultural education and move to the rural areas.

For rural youth it is important that public authorities and businesses seeking to create new jobs, take into consideration that young professionals will choose their future jobs according also to the comfortable and decent living and working conditions. For the sustainable development of rural areas, the focus should be in improving work sites and conditions.

Therefore, in this case, we consider it necessary to evaluate government’s criteria for the development of rural areas, taking into account the development of the infrastructure and the number of employed experts in rural areas.

Оглоблина Ю.В., член Центрального штаба ОНФ,

Председатель Российского союза сельской молодежи

80 % учащихся в аграрных вузах – сельская молодежь. К нашему сожалению, часто ребята поступают в аграрные вузы не потому, что мечтают стать ветеринаром, зоотехником и механизаторам. А потому что смогли поступить ТОЛЬКО в аграрный вуз по баллам ЕГЭ и в перспективе их ждет получение высшего образования. Для большинства родителей главное, чтобы у ребенка было высшее образование!

1.   Проблема: профориентация в школах. Мы уверены, для того, чтобы школьник выбор аграрной профессии делал осознанно, необходима правильно организованная профориентация, развитие системы агроклассов и ученических производственных бригад  в сельских школах.

При чем, профориентационная работа должна быть направлена не только на школьников, но и на их родителей и учителей. Сельский школьник, который постоянно слышит, такие напутствия как «будешь плохо учиться

• в колхозе трактористом будешь работать» конечно не сделает выбор в пользу сельского хозяйства, в пользу села.

Именно поэтому мы реализуем проект профориентации учащейся сельской молодежи «Выбираем профессию».

Мы проанализировали опыт агроклассов Самарской, Белгородской, Оренбургской, Калужской, Иркутской, Тюменской областей, Республики Калмыкия и Пермского края и определили, что наиболее эффективней их работа построена в Оренбургской области. Там занятия с агроклассниками проводятся в разных форматах:

• факультативные занятия по программе «Введение в агробизнес» организуют учителя школ;
• дистанционные занятия в сети Интернет (вебинары) уже ведут профессоры, доценты и преподаватели Оренбургского ГАУ;
• сотрудники Оренбургского ГАУ делают выездные занятия с проведением опытов, практических занятий, а также экскурсии на передовые аграрные хозяйства области и Оренбургский ГАУ.

По итогам курса каждый ученик разрабатывает бизнес-план «Моё собственное дело», после чего ребята с лучшими проектами участвуют в итоговой конференции агроклассников, где победители и призеры получают награды и приглашение к обучению по целевому набору.

Нужно распространить опыт работы агроклассов Оренбургской области во все вузы, имеющие аграрные направления обучения.

2.   Качественная практическая подготовка студентов. Если даже человек осознанно поступил в аграрный вуз, это еще не значит, что его ждут с распростертыми «объятьями» работодатели. Предприятия ждут готовых высококлассных специалистов…Сегодня вполне определенно можно констатировать факт: научно-образовательный комплекс отрасли сельского хозяйства становится оторванным от самой отрасли. Получается  «замкнутый круг»: образовательные учреждения не могут подготовить качественных специалистов при отсутствии заказов от предприятий АПК.

              В этом случае должны быть четко определены формы и механизмы сотрудничества образовательных организаций с работодателями. Будущие работодатели должны активно вовлекаться в учебный процесс, и многие готовы это делать и уже делают. Но не всегда к этому готовы вузы: они медленно реагируют на происходящие изменения и зачастую просто неспособны обеспечить выполнение требований работодателя. В некоторых случаях и сами работодатели не хотят проводить практику студентам.

              На профориентациях мы поднимаем престиж аграрных профессий, показываем современную высокотехнологичную технику на предприятиях, заинтересовываем тем самым будущих абитуриентов. Но когда студент обучается в вузе на старом оборудовании, а иногда и вовсе по книгам, ни разу не соприкоснувшись с практическим применением технологий своей будущей профессии, это безусловно мотивирует к выбору другой профессии.

Заинтересованные студенты хотят больше осваивать производственные процессы, набираться опыта на стадии обучения во время производственных практик. Поэтому здесь на наш взгляд необходимо:

• определить формы и механизмы сотрудничества образовательных организаций с работодателями, усилив контроль за прохождением практики студентами;
• уделять особое внимание повышению квалификации преподавательского состава, включить в программы обучения стажировки на предприятиях АПК и в организациях, обслуживающих АПК (например, производители и поставщики сельскохозяйственной техники и оборудования);
• предусмотреть систему льгот (или иных налоговых механизмов) для обеспечения процессов закупок образовательными учреждениями расходных материалов, используемых в процессе практического обучения: ГСМ, семян, удобрений, химикатов и т.д..

3.      Неэффективность целевого обучения.

Вроде отличное предложение для абитуриентов, когда тебе  гарантируют трудоустройство после окончания вуза, обучают на бюджетной основе; платят стипендию; обеспечивают местом для прохождения ознакомительной и преддипломной практики, выдавая все необходимые материалы для курсовых работ и научных статей.

Но после того, как студент 4-6 лет прожил в городе, когда диплом уже на руках, многие начинают задумываться, а стоит ли идти работать по целевому направлению в сельскую местность?

Например, в Новосибирской области за шесть лет не выполнили свои обязательства по договору почти 400 выпускников, которые должны были идти работать в агропромышленный комплекс. В общей сложности это около трети вчерашних студентов, которые получили диплом благодаря тому, что их учеба была оплачена из федерального бюджета. И такая статистика практически во всех регионах.

 Удивляет тот факт, что большинство ведомств ведут учет своих потребностей в специалистах, но не контролируют, приступил ли к работе тот или другой обладатель заветной «корочки» или нет.

Еще одна проблема в том, что новый закон об образовании предусматривает целевое обучение только для предприятий, в уставном капитале которых присутствует доля госсобственности, а таких в агарном секторе единицы. 

В этом случае на наш взгляд целесообразно:

• внести изменения в закон об образовании;
• усилить разъяснительную работу со студентами-целевиками и их родителями об обязательствах и ответственности за невыполнение условий договора;
• ввести в практику заключение договоров (от отказников-ццелевиков) с лучшими студентами старших курсов, обучающихся на бюджетной и платной основе.

Все выпускники, не важно, целевики, магистры или бакалавры, аграрии, спортсмены, врачи или учителя, готовы идти работать в сельскую местность лишь в том случае, если будут уверены в своем стабильном заработке, развитой инфраструктуре, наличии возможностей рожать и растить детей, а также интересно проводить свой досуг.

И здесь аграрным предприятиям в решении этих вопросов в одиночку не обойтись. Необходимо, чтобы в первую очередь местные и региональные власти были заинтересованы в формировании кадрового потенциала агропромышленных предприятий субъекта. Это их непосредственная задача - знакомить сельских ребят с программами поддержки, помогать поступать на целевые места учебного заведения, трудоустраиваться, получать гос.поддержку для улучшения жилищных условий.

При решении этих ключевых вопросов вероятность того, что молодые люди будут стремиться получить аграрное образование и переезжать на свою малую Родину, заметно увеличится.

Для сельской молодежи важно чтобы органы государственной власти и бизнеса, создающего новые рабочие места, учитывали, что молодые специалисты выберут то место работы, где обеспечены комфортные условия жизни и труда. И именно на устойчивое развитие сельских территорий должны быть  направлены основные силы.

Поэтому в этом случае считаем необходимым внести в оценку эффективности глав государств критерий по развитию сельских территорий, учитывающий развитие инфраструктуры и количество трудоустроенных специалистов в сельской местности.

Dear Moderator,

The age range 15-17 is a crucial short transition period that comes and goes with new entrants so fast that program design and implementation must be coherent and accurate for any meaningful achievement to be made. Scale, communities and governance environment are the specifics to watch. One of the most feasible options in my opinion, for securing decent employment opportunities for 15-17 is to intensify agriculture education and skill development during the youth’s rudimentary years in school. There is now global paradigm shift to ‘Newagriculture’ consequent of climate change, bio-fuel research, rising food price, food production shortfall and globalization that is effectively enhanced by ICT phenomenon. By implications of positive and negative impact on local agriculture say in Nigeria, it is very important to equally redesign the traditional agriculture curriculum and incorporate diverse practical aspects for intensive skills development.

Tradition

In Nigeria, the traditional education system that a child must pass through consists of the followings:

1) Common Entrance Examination designed to filter primary school pupils for secondary education

2) West African Examination Council (WAEC) examination is to certify secondary school completion

3) Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) examination to validate WAEC qualification in preparing for university registration. 4) National Business and Technical Examination Board (NABTEB) examination is designed for career pursue by youth with entrepreneurship indications

Present-day Approach

Due to increasing youth population and corresponding mounting pressure to create employment opportunities for the 15-17-18, an index new-agriculture examination (INDEX) is urgently required to filter out apt secondary school agric-entrepreneurs for special advance training and or engagement by industry operators. Underage may bear legal problem but in such a dire food insecurity and unemployment situations it is far better to engage the 15-17 in agric-industries than to be allowed to drift into the crime industry. The choice is really ours.

Piloting INDEX examination

A ten to twenty-year experiment could be launched in developing countries to pilot INDEX examination concept for 15-17 agric-entrepreneurship development. INDEX curriculum designers should bear in mind the different skills demand of 15-17-18 for securing decent employment. Decent agriculture-based employment hinges on capable knowledge and skills.

Starting point

The starting point for INDEX launching bears in the core activities of the young farmers club (YFC) in primary and secondary schools. In fact, INDEX examination designers should be urged to provide training modules and classroom learning activities for YFC development. ICT contribution to pilot networking, scaling and replication of the INDEX system through m-agriculture, e-farming and Open Data management, the Internet and Mobile phone can be made highly available in rural primary/secondary schools to accelerate the effort. It may be worth trying.

Thank you.

Dear FSN Forum,

Please find below my comment to this topic. I am also attaching two relevant documents:

1. Paper on "The Role of Youth in Agriculture and Food System Transformation in Zimbabwe". This paper was accepted for publication. It will appear in Journal of Global Resources second edition (2016)
2. An African Agrarian Philosophy and the Sustainable Development Goals: Nurturing Creativity in Science and Society.

Based on your experience, what are the specific challenges rural youth aged 15-17 face (different from those over 18) in making a (current or future) living in agriculture and related activities? How can you address them?

I am inclined to share my ideas on ‘creativity in science and society’ as we continuously search for innovative ways to view and enact rural development so as to impact positively on the age group of young people in question (aged 15 -17).  If you look closely at this age group, we read so much of the exceptional ideas around science (and other things) and how it can be used in society especially in places outside Africa.  The issue then is not to give the young people more science (though this is one strategy in food issues) but rather to broadly see what it is that this age group can creatively bring (and are bringing) to reality in their contexts.  The World Economic Forum Future of Jobs Report states that in 2020, complex problem solving, critical thinking, and creativity, will be among the top 10 skills needed in the job/employment market (i.e., in the world).  And of course, when we take agriculture and related activities as a point of reference, as in every other place in the world, we have still a long way in addressing the skills gap of the rural youth versus their urban counterparts as well as a host of generic challenges (e.g., access to land, finance, education, knowledge and skills).   We might have to be content in starting from unfamiliar territories (e.g. interdisciplinary disciplines) in seeking for solutions to the challenges faced by rural youth. 

In a country such as Zimbabwe, one cannot ignore the far-reaching influence of the external environment (e.g., political, social, and economic uncertainties, accessibility to markets, supporting policy instruments, etc) on the creative potential and abilities of young people (aged 15 – 17).  It is not just a matter of providing decent work to them but ensuring that they are able to fully make up their minds on taking on agriculture as not only a practical pursuit needed to provide food for generations but as an equally creative endeavor in one’s career and life.  We have to see beyond the problems for some of them possibly dabble on the country’s historical background and the necessity of an ideology before anything else takes (no matter how noble) root.  This is the world in which these young people find themselves in.  They would need to sharpen their knowledge and skills primarily through education and other forms of self-learning.  I am of the opinion that they are creative individuals and only the world stands to witness of the innovative ways that can bring dignity to rural development and how it has more than often, be taken to be. 

Last but not least, together with other ‘quick-minds’ we shared at the 2015 Innovation Baraza, an idea on ‘Reengineering food and energy security among rural youth in Zimbabwe’.  In this idea targeted at youth in Dora of Mutare, Manicaland Province of Zimbabwe, we attempted to link food and agriculture (poultry) and industrial development (biogas generation/methanol).  The fundamental questions that guided this creative pursuit were: Can food security hold the key to energy access? Can energy security hold the key to food security? This is the challenge that confronts the creative endeavors targeted at young people in rural communities for it not always solutions/answers that present at our doors but calculated risks.

Raymond Erick Zvavanyange, Country Representative, Young Professionals for Agricultural Development, Zimbabwe

Hello,

I would want to give a brief contribution to this discussion.  I took particular interest in this topic having recently completed a literature review on vocational education in agriculture for high school graduate in Nigeria. I would agree with the team that many rural youths are working poor and they face a myriad of constraints especially when they work in agriculture. However, the assertion that youth in agriculture are exposed to health and safety hazards is quite debatable. This is because working in agriculture is as difficulty and hazardous to the older people as to the youth. Secondly, many of this youth are also doing more strenuous jobs like brick layering, carpentry, transportation etc. which pose more health challenges than in agriculture.

In Nigeria, one of the greatest challenge for youth in agriculture is accessibility to credit and modern facilities. Who can lend a child of 17 years “10,000 dollars” to purchase a tractor?  Is it even legally possible? The non-availability of machines and lack of hiring service and opportunities to obtain credit makes agriculture more drudgery than it should be. Most of the youth engages in agriculture because it is the only available option. Probably, they receive a portion of land from their parents who cannot afford to send them to college and they produce just little and cannot expand due to lack of land. The credit system has not recognized this groups, hence, they are neglected even if there is a window for loan acquisition.

Let say they succeed in going to vocational schools, there is yet to be any specific incentives provided by governments to attract youths to enroll for vocational courses in agriculture. In Nigeria for example, vocational education in agriculture are usually open for youth who cannot pass important courses in their secondary school examination or did not earn enough score to get into the universities. The implication is that the system is meant to select only lazy students who sought for ways to escape from parental watch. Furthermore, although there are opportunities for internship, many organizations are simply not interested to hire agric-interns. In some extreme situation, you could see an agric-intern working in a computer factory.

Even when there is a commitment from the government towards promoting youth in agriculture, those program often does not last. Poor targeting, mismanagement, short time frame and total lack of commitment reduces the potent of such activities or policies. One big example from Nigeria, is the SURE P program and YEAP program. These are nice programs that aims to encourage youth to develop entrepreneur skills and pursue careers in agriculture. However, these programs have no relationship with agriculture vocational schools. Many recipients are people without any training in agriculture. You only win if you can write a good proposal, even if you lack the skills. Notwithstanding, this programs often die with the government that introduced them. There is totally no national policy to ensure their sustainability.

The neglect of the youth has caused and would continue to cause a lot of damage to the society. They often fall prey to extremist. Since they are unstable, they could indulge in socially unaccepted behavior like drugs, stealing, etc. To minimize some of the juvenile delinquencies they indulge in, government and the society should work together to engage them in sound and regular activities. On agriculture activities, I will recommend that:

1.       There should be a national policy instituted in the constitution or bye laws of countries that recognizes the statue of this group as dependable, vulnerable but capable. This law or policy should create windows for them to access little loan, get extension services, and prepare them to engage in agriculture exhibition or shows (of their products).

2.       Government and education system should reconsider and make better decisions on the entry level for vocational studies in agriculture. They should encourage agriculture companies to hire agri- interns and provide after agriculture loans for graduates.

3.       Programs on youth in agriculture should be made as tenacious as possible. This programs should be designed in such a way that the agricultural vocational education system would also benefit.

Obi Chinedu T.

International Masters in Rural Development

Ghent university Belgium

China Agriculture university Beijing , China