Nepal has imported farm products worth Rs215.50 billion in the last fiscal year, up by 10 percent year on year. Nepal’s reliance on foreign markets for agricultural goods has increased nearly fivefold in the last nine years whereas Nepal’s economy is mainly dependent on foreign employment despite the fact that Agriculture sector employing 66 percent of the total population provides 27.60 percent of Gross Domestic Product. National Population Census Report of 2011 considers youth between the age of 16 to 40 years, who represent more than 40 percent of the total population in Nepal. Numerous factors are impeding the development of Nepal’s youth, including shortage of employment opportunities as a result of which overseas migration and brain-drain has increased. More than 36 percent of youth are unemployed and in average 1500 Nepali youths out-migrate daily seeking employment abroad.
Nepal needs to encourage youth to engage in entrepreneurship within the country for sustainable enterprises such as agricultural or forest-based burgeoning youth as assets for transforming Nepali agriculture as youth represent the most active segment of the population with dynamism, strength, adventure and ambition assured to contribute to the economic development of the country if provided with proper learning and work opportunity. Entrepreneurship can be a powerful tool to help fight youth unemployment and youth entrepreneurship offers innovative solutions for economic growth among young people. Development of agriculture requires the use of improved inputs, technology, research and innovation, knowledge and skills among others. Achieving this would require critical understanding of the challenges faced by the youth at the production node of the agricultural value chain and the prospects of youth engagement in agriculture.
Agriculture must be made more remunerative and rewarding in terms of income and profitability with advances in technology, facilitate innovation and have greater relevance to a diverse and evolving agricultural sector, with a focus on agribusiness and entrepreneurship with technical skills, building capacity for management, decision-making, communication and leadership on focus. If we are to enable youth to transform agriculture then the barriers to their engagement should be addressed. With the increment in investment and engagement in agro-industry in Nepal, Involvement of youth in drafting of agriculture related policies and laws with all three tiers, Federal, Provincial and Local, access to land, provision of youth venture capital fund and enterprise loan, establishment of agri-business incubation center, training and learning for young farmers, development of ICT based agricultural solutions, modern tools and technological advancement, should be the ways to induce young people in agriculture.
Youths should be able to explore new frontiers of knowledge and innovation in the field of agriculture and exchange ideas and technologies with encouraging youths to adopt agriculture as an economic activity by equipping them with knowledge and expertise on agro-enterprises, agro-product management, and standardization as well as branding and marketing. Empowering youth towards agriculture is necessary to tackle food insecurity, climate change and enhance the agro economy of the nation. If the current constraints faced by the youth in agriculture are not addressed, youth entrepreneurship in agriculture will remain as a myth. With the targeted innovations and development, the youth can still be at the forefront of revitalizing the agricultural sector and agro entrepreneurship could be a potential source of gainful employment for the unemployed Nepali youth along with enhancing sustainability in the agriculture and economy of the nation.