The World Bank has reiterated its commitment to transforming agriculture into a profitable and sustainable business that drives jobs, income, and food security around the world.
Speaking at the AgriConnect Flagship Event held on the sidelines of the 2025 Annual Meetings of the IMF/World Bank Group in Washington, the World Bank Group President, Ajay Banga, said agriculture has always been central to development but must now evolve into a business that empowers smallholder farmers and stimulates economies.
“Today, the challenge is to grow more food and turn that growth into a business that produces higher incomes for smallholder farmers and more opportunity across entire economies,” Mr Banga said.
Mr Banga noted that over the next 10 to 15 years, about 1.2 billion young people in developing countries will enter the workforce, yet current projections suggest only 400 million jobs will be created.
He warned that without adequate job creation, millions of young people could face uncertainty, driving migration and social unrest.
“That is why the World Bank Group has made job creation our central mission,” he said.
According to him, while jobs largely come from the private sector, governments often play a critical role in enabling them.
The World Bank’s three-pillar strategy focuses on building infrastructure and skills, promoting a business-friendly regulatory environment, and using risk tools to attract private investment.
Mr Banga highlighted five key sectors that can drive development: infrastructure, agribusiness, healthcare, tourism, and value-added manufacturing, noting that agribusiness remains central to both job creation and meeting rising food demand.
Global food demand is expected to increase by over 50 per cent in the coming decades, placing greater responsibility on developing regions that already possess the core resources for agricultural expansion, land, water, sunlight, and human capital.
He observed that Africa holds 60 per cent of the world’s uncultivated arable land, giving it unmatched potential to boost yields and strengthen food systems.
Latin America and Asia also hold vast agricultural potential but face barriers like limited infrastructure and market access.
Mr Banga emphasised that 500 million smallholders produce 80 per cent of the world’s food, yet most remain trapped in subsistence farming due to limited access to electricity, finance, training, and storage.
To tackle this, the World Bank has begun executing a global strategy to help smallholders raise productivity, connect to value chains, and access markets and finance.
In 2024, the Bank set a goal to double its agribusiness commitments to $9 billion annually by 2030, mobilising an additional $5 billion in private capital.
The plan focuses on linking small farmers with input suppliers, buyers, lenders, and insurers through structured producer organisations that safeguard against exploitation and land loss.
“The focus is on the small farmer who lacks inputs, credit, advice, or a dependable buyer,” Banga added.
“Producer organisations, often built by governments or private actors, can connect them to suppliers, insurers, buyers, and lenders.”
Source: People Gazette
Image Credit: Connecting Africa
