While the global unemployment rate is declining, this hasn’t benefited everyone. Youth unemployment continues to be much higher than the rate for adults, with some 73 million young people all over the world struggling to find work and make a living.
In cities worldwide, many university graduates are either jobless or do not earn enough to survive in an urban setting. This is why some young people are leaving the city and moving to rural areas, where they are learning to live off the land.
In Cameroon, IFAD is working to create green opportunities for young people, which previously existed only in limited numbers.
After graduating, Lionel Patrick Ateba spent much of his time looking for employment. “Many businesses weren’t recruiting fresh graduates,” says Lionel.
Facing unemployment, he turned to agriculture with the Family Green Corp, an agribusiness that produces bio-fertilizers and ecological charcoal as climate-smart alternatives to chemical fertilizers and fossil fuels.
The business is flourishing thanks to the energy and commitment of young employees like Lionel. Everyone wins—consumers have greater access to food grown with safe fertilizers, and young people are being employed.
As more young people turn to agriculture, IFAD helps create employment opportunities through projects and grants so that they can stay connected to rural life, earn a living, and contribute to growing and selling nutritious and sustainable food.
Full article: IFAD website