Increased investment in agriculture is crucial for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, including the eradication of hunger and extreme poverty. However, to this end, investment must include those who need it most, namely the rural poor. The majority of poor people live in rural areas and are involved in agriculture.When given the opportunity, rural people have the ability to contribute significantly to food security and drive rural transformation. The involvement of women and youth are crucial. Perceived and real lack of rural livelihood opportunities push young people to migrate to cities and abroad. Meanwhile,the average age of farmers isgrowing. There is also a feminization of agriculture as women stay in rural areas to a higher degree than men and play a major role in the productionof food for domestic consumption. At the same time, women’s, especially young women’s, access to land, finance and input and output markets are constrained. FAO works to ensure that policies and strategies for investment are sensitive to the needs of women and youth.At the global level, FAO has been involved in the development of several international guidance standards such as the CFS principles for responsible investment in agriculture and food systems that stipulates that agricultural investment should empower women and youth.FAO is also responding to demands at the national level to facilitate the operationalization of such guidance standards. In Ghana, FAO is engaging in multi-stakeholder dialogue on responsible investment in agriculture and food systems. This has generated several policy recommendations and participants have committed to a draft action plan focusing on the involvement of women and youth in responsible agricultural investment, consisting of five thematic areas:
- Land access;
- Rural knowledge networks;
- Agriculture innovation and Information and Communication Technology (ICT);
- Youth and women-led agribusiness start-ups; and
- Public-private partnerships.
More opportunities for dialogue through recurring meetings and via social media have also been requested. To this end, an online forum is being launched. The online forum will assist participants to engage in informed and inclusive dialogue and co-generate knowledge on advocacy, capacity development needs and market opportunities for women and youth in agriculture and food systems.Participants may also use it to coordinate activities in their action plan and discuss other ways in which women and youth can meaningfully engage in and benefit from responsible investment in agriculture and food systems.
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Online forum for the involvement of women and youth in responsible agricultural investment in Ghana
