Supporting Youth in Agriculture Through the Skills for Agriculture Framework

15 July, 2026

The agricultural sector has always adapted to change. Today, however, farmers face increasingly complex challenges, from climate change and emerging pests and diseases to evolving technologies and shifting market demands. Meeting these challenges requires a skilled and adaptable workforce. Investing in youth in agriculture is essential to ensure the next generation has the knowledge, practical skills, and confidence to build successful careers in agriculture.

This World Youth Skills Day is an opportunity to recognize not only the importance of investing in youth in agriculture but also the need to support young people as they develop the skills they need to succeed. Building the right knowledge, behaviors, and technical skills gives young people a strong foundation for long-term careers in agriculture.

The Skills for Agriculture Framework helps make this possible. It sets out the knowledge, skills, and behaviors required for different roles across the agricultural sector. As such, it helps employers, educators, and individuals identify strengths, develop new skills, and plan their career development. The impact of this approach can be seen through PlantwisePlus, where young people are developing the skills and confidence to build rewarding careers while supporting farming communities.

A person in green work overalls carefully tending rows of young seedlings in a plant nursery. The seedlings are growing in raised beds under a shade-net structure supported by wooden posts, with sunlight filtering through and illuminating the lush green plants. — Plant nursery worker tending young seedlings in a shaded propagation area. Credit: CABI

Why supporting youth in agriculture matters

Young people entering agriculture need opportunities to develop a broad range of skills. Alongside technical knowledge, they need to communicate effectively, solve problems, work with farmers, and adapt to new challenges throughout their careers.

For employers, educators, and young professionals alike, it’s important to understand which skills matter and how they develop over time. The Skills for Agriculture Framework provides a practical guide by outlining the knowledge, skills, and behaviors required for different roles across the agricultural sector. It helps organizations develop their workforce while giving individuals a clearer understanding of the skills they need to progress in their careers.

A person wearing a blue shirt stands in an outdoor agricultural nursery area holding a hand tool. Young plants grow in prepared beds in the foreground, while trees and greenery form a blurred background. The scene shows hands-on crop cultivation and nursery management in a rural farming setting. — Preparing the ground for healthy crops. Credit: CABI, Ghana

Turning skills into action

The impact of investing in youth in agriculture is already evident through CABI’s PlantwisePlus programme.

In Uganda, PlantwisePlus partnered with the Zirobwe Agaliawamu Agri-business Training Association (ZAABTA) to train young people with the practical skills needed to become village-based agricultural service providers. During an intensive 10-day training programme, participants developed knowledge of plant health, pest and disease diagnosis, field observation, and advisory services before applying these skills in their own communities.

The activities aimed to support more than 1,000 young people to become village agents. This improves farmers’ access to trusted agricultural advice while creating new livelihood opportunities. It also shows how practical training, built around clearly defined skills, can prepare young people to support their communities.

Skills that strengthen communities

The long-term impact of investing in youth in agriculture is also evident in the journeys of young agripreneurs supported by PlantwisePlus.

One example is Zipporah, who transformed her training into a community-focused agricultural service enterprise. Through the Zipporah Farmers Center, she provides technical advice, access to quality agricultural inputs, climate-smart agriculture training, and market linkages. Rather than farmers having to seek support from multiple providers, the center brings these services together in one trusted location.

Alongside supporting hundreds of farmers each year, Zipporah mentors young people and women entrepreneurs, helping them build the knowledge and confidence to establish their own agricultural enterprises. Her story shows that communication, leadership, and business development are just as important as technical expertise in building trusted relationships with farming communities.

Another example is Mary Mueni, a young agripreneur from Kenya. Mary’s work combines agribusiness expertise with farmer training and climate-smart agriculture. By sharing knowledge and encouraging innovation, she is helping other young people see agriculture as a rewarding career.

The experiences of Zipporah and Mary show that success in agriculture requires more than technical knowledge. Communication, leadership, and the ability to build trusted relationships are all equally important for career progression.

A framework for lifelong learning

Agriculture continues to evolve, bringing new technologies, approaches, and ways of working. Building new skills throughout a career is just as important as developing them in the first place.

In Kenya, 26-year-old spray service provider Solomon Kariuki combined integrated pest management training with CABI’s Crop Sprayer app to improve the accuracy of pesticide applications. Using digital tools alongside his technical knowledge, he has expanded his business, trained other young spray service providers, and helped farmers improve the efficiency of crop protection.

His experience highlights the importance of continuous learning. The Skills for Agriculture Framework supports this by helping individuals identify areas for development throughout their careers and by giving organizations a structured way to plan training and workforce development.

Investing in youth in agriculture

On World Youth Skills Day, we highlight how investing in youth in agriculture is about more than preparing young people for work. It’s about supporting the next generation in meeting the challenges facing agriculture, strengthening farming communities, and building resilient food systems.

The Skills for Agriculture Framework helps employers, educators, and individuals understand the knowledge, skills, and behaviors needed to achieve this. When combined with practical programmes such as PlantwisePlus, it can help ensure young people have the opportunity to build rewarding careers while making a lasting contribution to agriculture.

Two people examine a vegetable plant in an outdoor field. One person wearing a white coat uses a small tool to inspect or prune part of the plant while the other person holds a stem for closer observation. The crop is supported by wooden stakes and twine, with green foliage and developing fruit visible among the plants. The scene shows hands-on agricultural advisory or crop monitoring work in a cultivated field under clear daylight conditions. — Plant health assessment and crop management support in a vegetable production plot. Credit: CABI

Further information

The Skills for Agriculture Framework signposts users to verified learning from trusted external providers and the CABI Academy. Courses are mapped to the knowledge, skills, and behaviors described in the framework, helping users identify learning that is relevant to different agricultural roles. Where available, learners can gain recognized certification. All CABI Academy courses are aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).