NEW DELHI, 5 July 2025: A renewed focus on agrifood systems could help tackle soaring global youth unemployment while adding a significant boost to the world economy, according to a new report from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
Released on July 3, The Status of Youth in Agrifood Systems highlights that over 20 per cent of the world’s 1.3 billion young people between 15 and 24 years of age are currently not in employment, education or training (NEET). Engaging these youth, particularly those aged 20–24, could generate a 1.4 per cent increase in global GDP, with nearly half of that potential driven by greater youth participation in agrifood systems.
The report shows that while 44 per cent of working youth are currently engaged in agrifood systems, their share has declined from 54 per cent in 2005, signalling a risk of future labour shortages as rural youth numbers dwindle. The document warns that more than half of global youth now live in urban areas, with only 5 per cent of youth found in industrial agrifood regions, urging governments to make farming more attractive and sustainable.
Nearly 85 per cent of global youth reside in low- and lower-middle-income countries, where agrifood systems are essential for livelihoods, the report noted. Alarmingly, food insecurity among young people rose from 16.7 per cent to 24.4 per cent between 2014–16 and 2021–23, hitting Africa the hardest.
Climate change also threatens the prospects of youth in rural regions, with an estimated 395 million rural young people living in areas expected to see declining agricultural productivity, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa.
“The report provides a timely and evidence-based assessment of how decent jobs and food security for youth can be achieved through agrifood systems transformation, and how empowered youth can act as catalysts for broader agrifood systems transformation,” said FAO Director-General QU Dongyu.
