The number of young farmers in Indonesia is distressing considering agriculture as primary element and crucial sector in a country.

Discussing the number of young farmers in Indonesia would be inseparable with young people perception towards agriculture sector in Indonesia.

There are plenty of young people who are not interested to participate in agriculture, and that cause farmers regeneration declining and reach distressing stage.

Ideally there should be precise steps from the government to collaborate with the community to deal with numbers of young farmers crisis in Indonesia.

Considering the age of Indonesian farmers which mostly has become elderyage, it is mandatory to start thinking how to manage farmer regeneration in agricultural sector in Indonesia.

When agriculture in one country doesn’t work well, it’s certain that the economy will stagnate and there will be starvation in various regions.

Farmers are producers of food in one country.  The role is very important in order to cover the food needs.

The numbers of Indonesia young farmers in Indonesia relatively small compare to the total numbers of farmers. In 2019 it was recorded only around 33.4 million total farmers; from that number, number of young people only 2.7 million with age range 20 and 30 years. The remaining 30 million registered farmers were over 40 years of age, even 50 to 60 years of age.

This will worsen with decreasing number of regeneration each year.

The Reason Number Of Young Farmers In Indonesia Is Not Ideal

To overcome declining number of young farmers, we need to understand what the reasons are.

If we understand the reasons behind declining numbers, the action taken would be more effective and on target.

The main reason might be due to the lack of interest of young people to pursue work in the agriculture sector.

That main reason can still be detailed further.

Then, we find solutions for those reasons of why the small number of young farmers in Indonesia.

The following are some reasons causing young people not interested in agriculture in consequent the number of young farmers in Indonesia become less.

1. Farming is a tough job, in particular if you look at insubstantial farming yields.
2. The inadequate welfare of farmers in Indonesia which makes young people reconsidering in participating and explore agriculture sector.
3. The stigma of farmers as profession, also induce disinterest on young people.
4. The issue of limited agricultural land per farmer also is a consideration for many young people to be a farmer, they prefer to work in an office.

From some of these reasons, we think it is very logic that many young people are not interested to join and explore agriculture sector.

Recommendation Steps for Government and Supporting Institutions To Increase Number Of Young Farmers In Indonesia

The number of young farmers issue should be a concern for Indonesian government, if not then the consequences are fatal.

Agriculture is related to food, this can trigger a lot of problems in the community if it is not immediately addressed well.

If we look carefully at some above reasons, the number of young farmers issue might be solved properly.

There are several steps that the government could take to significantly increase number of young farmers in Indonesia.

The following are some recommendations steps the government might take to increase number of young farmers in Indonesia.

1. The first step is to provide sufficient agricultural land for young people to choose land to work on.
2. The second step is to make policies that improve farmers welfare, this also will increase young people interest in agriculture sector.
3. Another step is to support and oversee farming communities in various regions, to boost farmer regeneration as has been done by Yayasan Agri Sustineri Indonesia.
4. The next step is to gradually improve public’s view towards farmers which will increase number of young farmers in Indonesia.
5. Forming a special forum that absorb farmers aspirations, to make youth be more enthusiastic to explore and advance Indonesian agriculture.

The sense of interest in agriculture might not be able to be pre-arranged but there are steps that could be taken to improve and motivate the youth.

The youth will start thinking and considering to join agriculture sector and that will increase the number of young farmers in Indonesia.

What is the Ideal Number of Young Farmers in Indonesia?

The sustainability and progress of agriculture in Indonesia itself is directly affected by the number of young farmers in Indonesia.

The current condition is far from ideal. The ideal condition is that 50% of farmers in Indonesia are young farmers.

However, if we discuss in stages, then the target for number of young farmers may be around 30% at the moment. If we look at number of young farmers in Indonesia today which is only about 20%, it is still distressing.

Indonesia must increase number of young farmers in Indonesia by around 8 to 10 percent for the next 10 years.

With that percentage of regeneration we might be able to secure and improve agriculture in Indonesia and beyond.

Conclusion

The ideal number for young farmers in Indonesia is 50% of the total farmers in Indonesia.

And to gradually achieve that, the government must take effective steps to increase the number of young farmers in Indonesia.