According to the latest 2017 State of Food and Agriculture report by the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), the key to achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development are transforming rural communities and promoting agriculture. To that end, it is hoped that rural areas are poised to be a significant economic driver in developing countries.
The report outlines a strategy that would leverage the enormous untapped potential of food systems to drive agro-industrial development, boost small-scale farmers’ productivity and incomes, and create off-farm employment in expanding segments of food supply and value chains.
While the prospects of lifting rural communities out of poverty look good, progress is slowed down by rapid population growth. According to the report, between 2015 and 2030, the combined population of Africa and Asia is expected to rise from 5.6 billion to more than 6.6 billion.
It further states that in sub-Saharan Africa, the number of people aged 15 – 24 years is projected to increase by more than 90 million by 2030, with the highest rise in rural areas. The large increases in youth population will create a challenge of unemployment in the decades to come. There is low productivity in the industrial sector and agriculture, which means new job seekers will struggle to find employment. As a result, those who migrate from rural areas to the cities will likely add to the growing numbers of the urban poor.
According to the report, rural communities are therefore likely to escape poverty if they remain in rural areas and not move to urban areas. The solution is to drive investment to rural areas and create policies that support small-scale farmers. Currently, smallholder food producers have little to no access to profitable markets and value chains, which are dominated by large producers and retailers.
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