Targeting the rural poor: the role of education and training

While there is at present no single solution to the alleviation of rural poverty, education and training are critical elements. Growth needs to be achieved with equity and rural dwellers need to have the capacity to be participants in the labour market and in society. It is accepted that farmers with basic education are more likely to adopt new technology, behave in a less risk adverse manner, and become more productive. With basic education they are better equipped to make more informed decisions for their lives and for their communities and to be active participants in promoting economic, social, and cultural dimensions of development. It is equally accepted that excess rural labour has to find work outside the farm whether in rural or urban settings and that without basic literacy and numeracy, individuals are unlikely to be hired for anything more than basic wage labour. Businesses, large or small, are unlikely to choose to invest in rural areas if skilled or trainable human resources are unavailableThe authors state that education in rural areas has been largely ignored but that circumstances have changed so that non-farm activities have become more important. They argue that education for this more diverse population has failed to catch up. The authors call for:the donor community and developing countries combine for an all out assault on rural povertyenhanced human capital in the rural space that can be employed and trained especially for off-farm rural employment opportunitiesincreased availability of off-farm employmentmore investment in education, infrastructure, communications, and health care, essential enabling factors for sustainable rural developmentprovision of better survival skills (life skills) for those who choose to remain in the rural areas and for those who decide to migrate to urban settingsgeneral practice of sustainable agriculture and natural resource managementThe authors make recommendations for activities and initiatives to address these issues and describe an ongoing FAO/IIEP initiative.