1. LAUNCH AND POLICY DIALOGUE
REGIONAL FAO-IFAD Project
STRENGHENING DECENT RURAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES
FOR YOUNG WOMEN AND MEN IN THE CARIBBEAN
7 - 9 September 2015
Bridgetown, Barbados
IFAD's engagement with rural
youth
Andrea Marchetti - IFAD
2. Overview
Context
What is IFAD
Challenges/Opportunities in
Agriculture and Rural Development
IFAD in the LAC region
IFAD’s engagement with rural youth
General Outlook
Strategic priorities
IFAD’s work on youth in the LAC
countries
A key partnership for the Caribbean
3. What is IFAD
IFAD is the only global IFI/UN Agency exclusively
dedicated to rural development. Its goal is to
empower poor people to achieve higher incomes
and improved food security
IFAD works with governments and with rural
communities, while being a catalyst for partnerships
and alliances, bringing in co-financing from other
organizations and the private sector
IFAD provides financing, through loans and grants,
to governments, NGOs and research institutes for
the promotion and impact of rural development
activities.
4. Challenges in Agriculture and Rural
Development
• Rural Population
– A large proportion of the most
entrepreneurial rural workforce has
migrated.
– The rural adult population is ageing...
5. ◦ …and farmers’ children don’t necessarily want to
continue being farmers. Rural youth aspirations are
now similar to those of urban youth
Challenges in Agriculture and
Rural Development
6. Latin America and the
Caribbean
Predominantly made of Middle Income
Countries (MICs), mainly in continental Latin
America, plus Small islands developing
states (SIDS) in the Caribbean.
Increasingly urban, with high levels of
disparities vs the rural areas.
Highly vulnerable to climate change effects
and natural disasters.
High rates of unemployment in the rural
areas, particularly for women and youth,
resulting in migration of skilled labour force
9. IFAD’s engagement with Youth
IFAD has currently no corporate strategy on
youth…
…HOWEVER
In 2010, IFAD adopted its 2011-2015 Strategic
Framework which points at "the creation of
viable opportunities for rural youth" as one of
its principles of engagement with its clients
10. IFAD’s engagement with
Youth
• Since then, IFAD addressed the issue of rural
youth in a number of corporate and global
events
2011 IFAD
Governing
Council
2012 Farmers'
Forum
2014 – The
International Year
of Family Farming
11. IFAD’s engagement with
Youth
• Currently, there are 40 ongoing IFAD-financed projects
worldwide with focus on youth
• LAC is the most covered region with 10 projects
12. IFAD’s engagement with Youth
Focus on:
Policy dialogue
Strengthening and sharing
knowledge
Entrepreneurship and
employment
13. Policy
dialogue
2010 IFAD's Cartagena
workshop on rural youth:
creation of the Global
Youth Innovation Network
(GYIN), to foster
participation of young
people in public policies
processes
IFAD Grant for inclusion of
young people in policy
processes:
training of 40 young leaders
from Argentina, Brazil, Chile,
Paraguay and Uruguay (2013)
2012 Farmers’ Forum:
Adoption of Youth
Declaration for future
inclusion of at least 30%
of young farmer
representatives in future
Farmers’ Forums
14. Strengthening and
sharing knowledge
Partnership with
ILO:
2013 Report on
impact of
decent
employment
policies in rural
areas
Policy Briefs on
youth
A guide to
provide policy-
makers with
practical
advices for
addressing rural
youth issues
(2012)
IFAD Lessons
learned:
Supporting
rural young
people in
IFAD projects
(2014)
Joint IFAD/FAO/CTA
publication:
Youth and agriculture -
key challenges and
concrete solutions
(2014)
15. Entrepreneurship and
employment
promotion through its
projects:
Colombia’s
Oportunidades and
Sierra Norte created a
Learning Fund to
promote youths’ access
to resources for
economic initiatives
IFAD in El Salvador:
In 2014 and 2015, IFAD’s
activities in the country: (i)
supported training to
approx. 2,000 young
people; (ii) provided 45
scholarships and (iii) co-
organized 5 business fairs
on entrepreneurship skills.
Child Labour in
Agriculture:
IFAD is member of this
Partnership, involved
in safe agricultural
practices to reduce
hazardous work and
dependence on child
labour
16. A key partnership for the Caribbean
Strengthening decent rural employment opportunities for
young women and men in the Caribbean (FAO-FIDA
Youth CARIBE)
US$ 1.8 million grant to FAO to implement the three-
year regional programme, entirely focused on youth
Strategic partnership between two UN agencies (FAO-
IFAD) in the Caribbean
Possibility for scaling up successful experiences from a
closed grant-financed project in the DR-Haiti border,
financed by IFAD and implemented by FAO DO and
PROCASUR
18. 6 initial participating countries (Belize, Cuba, Dominican Republic,
Grenada, Guyana and Haiti) + 3 other (Barbados, St. Lucia and St.
Vincent and the Grenadines) expected to participate
3-year programme implementation period
120 mini-projects funded through a grant competitive process
FAO-FIDA Youth CARIBE : Some figures
FAO-FIDA Youth CARIBE
IFAD (Grant): US$ 1.8 Million
FAO: US$ 0.5 Million
PROCASUR: US$ 0.1 Million
Part. Govts: US$ 0.5 Million
Total: US$ 2.9 Million
19. FAO-FIDA Youth CARIBE
Aligned with IFAD’s approach in SIDS as it aims to
enhance opportunities for smallholder agriculture to
become a vibrant business for youth
Implemented by FAO SLC, a full-fledged and highly
dynamic sub-regional office, based in Barbados
Will encourage strong partnerships with other
organizations in the region (ILO, CAFAN etc.)
Will work in collaboration with Governments of
participating countries
20. Closing Remarks
"The key to meeting the world's future food needs is to
create an environment that will encourage and enable
young women and men to remain in their communities. They
need opportunities to improve their own lives, obtain decent
work and pursue prosperity."
IFAD President, Kanayo F. Nwanze.
IFAD:
Investing in
young
rural
people
NB: IFAD has an average leverage of approx. 2 for 1 USD in the LAC region, i.e. for any dollar invested in the region by IFAD, the double is leveraged as co-financing including govt., private sector and other donors. In the case of Brazil, for USD 164 million invested by IFAD, there is an approx. USD 452 million total programme of investment in the country.