The Dynamics of Youth Employment and Empowerment in Agriculture and Rural Development in South Africa: A Scoping Review

Abstract

Over the years, South Africa has made significant investments aimed at transforming the agricultural sector to deliver on rural economic development and job creation. These investments have had varying levels of success; still, what is worrying is the high youth unemployment rate which is amongst the highest globally. We conducted a scoping review using the PRISMA-P guidelines to identify the challenges youth face in accessing sustainable employment in the agriculture sector. Peer-reviewed studies were retrieved from online databases (Web of Science, Cab Direct, and Science Direct) for 1994–2021. The findings showed that youth are still facing significant challenges in the demand and supply side of the labour market and lack of inclusivity in policy formulation and implementation, limiting their involvement in agriculture and rural development initiatives. Policies and strategies responding to these challenges exist, and the spectrum of support services provided are primarily focused on entrepreneurship. Yet, the implementation of programs and initiatives has not been successful. This could be attributed to the obstacles persisting in the sociopolitical environment in SA, causing additional barriers to program implementation. Therefore, to enhance youth involvement in agriculture and rural development, there is a need to connect more rural youth to support services, local employment programmes, and youth inclusion in policy formulation processes. Additionally, the focus of policy and programs should be broadened to cater to different youth knowledge and skill profiles.

Factors affecting youth empowerment and entrepreneurial initiatives: Social implications and way forward

“…It is evident from the results that the respondents, drawn from different parts of the country, are of the view that government policies have a significant positive impact on the motivation of youngsters to embark on entrepreneurial initiatives and empower themselves. Similar findings have been reported by Augsberger et al ( 2019 ) in the US, Ogamba ( 2019 ) in Nigeria, and (Geza et al, 2022 ) in South Africa. This reinforces our finding that policies devised by the government can either empower youth or suppress their entrepreneurial motivations.…”

Desarrollo Sostenible una mirada rural: revisión sistemática

“…Se debe incluir en los sistemas de manejos de alimentos la gobernanza y los cambios de comportamiento como factores para evaluar la calidad, el desperdicio y la producción (Ming et al, 2022). Considerar el espíritu empresarial que tienen los jóvenes, así mismo, se debe procurar que participen en las agricultura y desarrollo rural, conectando a los programas locales de empleo e inclusión en la formulación de las políticas, considerando, además los perfiles de conocimientos y las habilidades que manejan (Geza et al, 2022).…”

A sociological perspective on making South African tourism monumental through folklore

“…It is then logical that the South African tourism sector ought to employ folklore that is indigenous to South Africans (and foreign to visitors) to advance and accelerate its potentialities in terms of the socio-economic and developmental plan. The significance of undertaking this scholarly discourse rests on the reality that South Africa is engulfed by a decaying economy and high levels of unemployment (Geza et al, 2022). For example, South Africa has a 66.5% youth unemployment rate (Geza et al, 2022) and therefore, it stands to reason that different solutions to the problem be debated.…”

“…The significance of undertaking this scholarly discourse rests on the reality that South Africa is engulfed by a decaying economy and high levels of unemployment (Geza et al, 2022). For example, South Africa has a 66.5% youth unemployment rate (Geza et al, 2022) and therefore, it stands to reason that different solutions to the problem be debated. Such approaches should begin by viewing tourism as a crucial component that ought to be nurtured in order to employ many young men and women.…”