Nature & Faune

This Issue of Nature & Faune puts forward the case of “African Youth in Agriculture, Natural Resources and Rural Development”. It comprises twenty one articles from authors of various backgrounds, including: policy makers, conservation NGOs; the private sector; civil society groups; research and academia as well as youth groups. The articles offer field experiences, conceptual frameworks, and ideas on what needs to be done at local, national, regional and international levels to support young Africans to deliver their full potential in rural development through agriculture and natural resources management. The editorial highlights an increasing acceptance of migration as a ‘development enabler’ that has to be considered once the current Millennium Development Goals phases out in 2015. It reveals how development partners and renewable natural resource management organizations can embrace migration and plan their interventions and investments efforts taking youth migration into account. The Special Feature examines the fundamentals of adapting university education to produce graduates for a changing world and the importance of practical experience to promote entrepreneurship. A guest writer is of the opinion that African agriculture per se does not have the capacity to absorb the huge mass of young people reaching the job market – this can only be possible if agriculture triggers a set of associated value chain related activities that indeed will, to some extent, have this capacity. This edition is rich in success stories including the incisive exploration of the likelihood of South-South Cooperation to offer sustainable agriculture-led solutions to youth unemployment in Africa. Under the regular feature “Country Focus”, the spot light is on the Republic of Liberia show-casing it as the oldest independent republic in Africa as well as one of the most youthful countries in the world!