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Regional Technical Platform for Family Farming

Rural youth and family farming

Rural youth play a fundamental role in ensuring the sustainability of family farming and the development of rural territories. Their active participation in family farming presents an opportunity to catalyze the changes and improvements necessary to achieve the transformation of agri-food systems and guarantee food and nutritional security for Latin America and the Caribbean.

Young people have the capacity to promote innovation and the adoption of new technologies that make it possible to increase agricultural productivity in a sustainable way. They have a greater willingness to explore new opportunities in the agri-food sector and to undertake, contributing to the revitalization of local economies. 

However, this group faces a series of barriers that do not allow it to reach its full development and potential. Employment opportunities in agri-food systems and rural territories remain limited, poorly paid and of poor quality. In addition, they face poor access to land and other natural resources, infrastructure, financing, technology, knowledge and support services, as well as insufficient opportunities to participate in political and strategic dialogues.

To attract and retain young family farmers, these constraints need to be addressed and governments, civil society organizations, academia and the private sector need to work together. Within the framework of this Platform, it is expected to promote dialogue and cooperation between the different actors involved to promote the development and implementation of policies, programs, strategies and incentives in the following areas:

  • To improve the participation of young people in family farming, the rural economy and decision-making processes.
  • Improve young people's access to natural resources such as land, productive goods, information, infrastructures, financial services and markets.
  • To improve the generational change in agriculture, fisheries and forestry.
  • To improve the capacity of young family farmers in innovation practices that interconnect area-specific (traditional) knowledge with new solutions.