Rural and Agricultural Finance

In Africa, Agriculture is a leading sector for youth employment (45%). Moreover, the number of agrifood work opportunities for young women and men is expected to increase by ~45Mln jobs by 2030. Rising population, urbanization, and demand for processed goods will drive an increase in the total number of jobs and a shift toward processing and consumption. The majority of work opportunities for young women and men are expected to remain in production (80% today vs. 60% in 2030). However, faster growth is expected for work opportunities in processing and consumption (0.3x for production vs. 3–4x increase for processing and consumption).

As young people increasingly engage in agricultural primary production, agro-processing, and agribusiness, there is a need to ensure that youth participation in agriculture and food systems transformation is mainstreamed and scalable.

The Mastercard Foundation has been actively working to change the narrative around youth involvement in agriculture by implementing initiatives that demonstrate the potential of agriculture as a viable and profitable livelihood option for young people.

Through our work, the Foundation has found that when young people are provided with the right support, skills, resources, and incentives, they are highly motivated to engage in agriculture and in turn, transform the sector. The Foundation has evolved its approach from agriculture to agrifood systems. Our work is focused on creating resilient, sustainable, and equitable agrifood systems that create work opportunities for young people.