AgriCities Akademi’de, Tarım ve Kırsal Kalkınmada Gençlerin Rolü ve Önemi başlığını Prof. Dr. Fahri Yavuz ile değerlendirdik.
Gençlerin tarımın geleceğindeki stratejik rolüne dair önemli tespitler… 🌾
#AgriCitiesAkademi #GençÇiftçiler #TarımınGeleceği #Tarım #sürdürülebilirtarım
Gençlerin tarımın geleceğindeki stratejik rolüne dair önemli tespitler… 🌾
#AgriCitiesAkademi #GençÇiftçiler #TarımınGeleceği #Tarım #sürdürülebilirtarım
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HaberlerDöküm
00:02Greetings to the valued followers of the International Association of Agricultural Cities.
00:07Today we are presenting the Eglistis Academic program.
00:10We are with Professor Dr. Fahri Yavuz.
00:14Welcome, Professor.
00:15Nice to meet you. Thank you from Erzurum. Warm greetings from cold Erzurum.
00:20Professor, our topic now is the importance of the role of young people in agriculture and rural development.
00:25Now, as is the case worldwide, the agricultural population is aging in Türkiye as well.
00:32Türkiye's population might be below the world average, but as far as I know, it's currently approaching 60.
00:40Professor, first of all, how can we keep the young people we have in agriculture?
00:46How can we get young people who are not involved in agriculture to enter the agricultural sector? Please, Professor.
00:51Yes, you asked a general question, it covers everything.
00:54I don't know, do you have any questions?
00:57As they always say, young people are our future.
01:02Yes.
01:03If young people are our future, then the future of agriculture is also young people.
01:10That's why young people absolutely need to be involved in agriculture and be attracted to it.
01:18Let's try to explore this a bit more in this conversation.
01:22Now, as is the case worldwide, the number of people working in agriculture and the rural population are decreasing in Türkiye.
01:30Of course, it's not right to interpret this in only one way.
01:34This issue has two dimensions.
01:36One of them is the population working in agriculture.
01:38A decrease in this is actually an indicator of development.
01:43But a decrease in the rural population is not a good thing.
01:48For example, in America and Europe, the percentage of the population working in agriculture in developed countries ranges from one, two, to five percent.
02:00It is decreasing in parallel with development.
02:03But the population lives in rural areas.
02:06For example, it's eighteen percent in America and it's the same in Europe.
02:10Therefore, it's necessary to distinguish between the two.
02:16You were one percent of the population involved in agriculture, right?
02:19You said eighteen percent.
02:20What are you doing with that seventeen percent?
02:21I just live in the countryside, so I don't produce anything.
02:24Some of them are retired.
02:26There are people who go back and forth to the city.
02:29There are people working in agriculture-based sectors in rural areas.
02:34There are people working in the tourism sector.
02:36So there is a distribution like that.
02:39So, the soil...
02:41So, it doesn't really have a significant economic equivalent in terms of production, right?
02:45Sir?
02:46So, in terms of production, in terms of agricultural production, it has no equivalent.
02:49They live in the countryside.
02:50Of course, if someone is producing crops for their own consumption, that wouldn't really be considered agricultural activity.
03:00So, in a way, it's an advantage that comes with living in a small, rural area.
03:06Now that I've said that, that I've clarified that, we see that the rural population is aging.
03:16This is the main problem for us.
03:18The average age of those working in agriculture is 59, or as you mentioned earlier, around 60.
03:28When we look at it, it's around 25% for those over 65.
03:34Around 35% for those aged 50-64.
03:38For example, 35-49% is 30%, 25-34% is 9%, and 15-24% is 2%.
03:48So we are seeing a decrease in the proportion of the population working in agriculture in rural areas, as the population shifts towards younger people.
03:57If we generalize, there are three main problems here.
04:04First, how can we retain the population in rural areas?
04:08So how can we ensure that rural areas don't become deserted?
04:12For example, my village, despite being very close to the district center—or rather, very close to it—is deserted in winter; not even a single person lives there, let alone a family.
04:23It remains empty.
04:25It fills up to a certain extent in the summer.
04:27Therefore, there is a depopulation in rural areas.
04:30This is a serious danger.
04:31How can we keep this going in rural areas?
04:35How can we attract young people to rural areas?
04:38And of course, how can we direct university candidates with the capacity to become expert leaders in agriculture towards higher education in agriculture?
04:51When I say agricultural higher education here, I'm not just referring to faculties of agriculture.
04:57Veterinary faculties, fisheries faculties, forestry faculties, food engineering departments – all of these are essentially sectors that produce living material for human life.
05:15related higher education.
05:17Therefore, I mean all of them.
05:21Let's try to answer these questions.
05:24But before that, please.
05:27Before I get into the topic, Professor, let me ask a very brief, cross-referenced question about what we call higher education.
05:36I'll ask a question outside of this.
05:37You are an academician at a university, and your field is related to higher education.
05:40What do you think of the education?
05:42So when we compare it to abroad, university education, in faculties, in agricultural faculties, in veterinary faculties, in food engineering.
05:50So, where do we stand compared to the rest of the world?
05:53Are we okay?
05:54So I'm not asking this question in connection with the low scores.
05:58I will get to him, but let me give you a very brief answer.
06:02Demand for higher education in agriculture is declining worldwide, except in Africa.
06:08In 2015, I attended a conference in Spain on agricultural higher education in the 21st century.
06:18There were academics, administrators, and industry representatives from all over the world.
06:26So that's the situation.
06:27Demand for higher education in agriculture is low all over the world.
06:31Solutions to how we can overcome this were already discussed there.
06:37I will talk about them, excluding Africa.
06:40I'll try to answer that question you mentioned in my future posts as well.
06:45We had a statistics professor at Uludağ University's Faculty of Agriculture named Zeki Mithin Turan.
06:50He said something like, "I left medical school and came to agricultural school."
06:56So, back then, the scores were higher than for medicine.
06:59So, am I one of those who think that the fact that the scores are low now doesn't mean that the content of the education provided is of poor quality, professor?
07:08Of course, it's not about education; it's about the perspective of people working in this sector.
07:15As you mentioned, during our student years, the medical faculty was competing with the dental and dentistry faculties.
07:26So, I received training back then, and I'm providing training now.
07:29This is more about trends than the quality of education.
07:34Before we move on to our main topic, I would like to state the following.
07:42The agricultural sector's share of the economy, that is, its share of total income, is gradually decreasing in our country.
07:52It dropped to around five percent.
07:55This is also the case in developed countries.
07:57This development doesn't mean that agricultural production has decreased.
08:03This is due to faster growth in other sectors.
08:08But while agriculture's share of total income is declining, its strategic importance is steadily increasing.
08:16And today, food security, food undersecurity, is increasingly becoming a matter of national security.
08:23Because as long as humans live, they will need food and clothing.
08:29Therefore, this sector, this profession will continue.
08:33It has that kind of importance.
08:35On the other hand, in terms of the conservation of natural resources, the environment, climate change, and sustainability, which are among the most popular topics today, the agricultural sector is at the forefront.
08:47It ranks among the top.
08:48Agriculture both influences and is influenced by these factors.
08:53So, if you misuse natural resources, for example in agriculture, or pollute the environment, it even has an impact on climate change.
09:02And it is affected by these things as well.
09:04Therefore, agriculture emerges as an important sector in this respect as well.
09:09Another important point is that we always overlook it.
09:13Türkiye's agricultural sector has significant strengths.
09:18These are things that our people, especially young people, need to know.
09:24Firstly, we say it's a country with seven climates.
09:27So, climate diversity provides us with product diversity.
09:33Isn't it?
09:34So climate diversity means product diversity.
09:36For example, bananas grow in the Mediterranean region, and tea grows in the Black Sea region.
09:40There is diversity in agriculture, such as livestock farming in Eastern Anatolia, grapes in the Aegean region, and other products in Southeastern Turkey.
09:50This diversity provides us with a guarantee in terms of food safety.
09:57So we don't need to be overly dependent on others.
10:01There are countries that can only produce a few types of these products.
10:05It has that advantage.
10:07Secondly, product diversification also reduces risk.
10:11When there is product diversity in a business, in a sector, or in a country, the risk also decreases.
10:19Why this risk?
10:20It can be caused by market conditions or climatic conditions.
10:25Thirdly, we have very neighboring countries whose food consumption is heavily reliant on imports.
10:31Therefore, if we can utilize our external supply opportunities, that is, our export opportunities, we can increase them.
10:40So what does all this do to us?
10:46What does it provide?
10:48Climate diversity gives us an advantage.
10:51On the other hand, both the population is increasing and per capita income is rising.
10:58This creates domestic demand for agricultural production.
11:03In addition to the external demand we just mentioned, domestic demand, especially for animal products, is increasing rapidly.
11:12As you know, as wealth or income increases, the consumption of meat and dairy products also increases.
11:20Another point is that we have an ancient agricultural culture.
11:24We have many endemic species.
11:26When we put all of this together, our sector truly has significant advantages, and we must be aware of these advantages, both for our youth and for our people.
11:37I think it should be.
11:41Having said that, why do we say "young people"?
11:44Young people are our future, the future of agriculture.
11:50Another advantage is that young people are more technologically adept.
11:56In other words, they need to be innovative individuals who think creatively and embrace new technologies.
12:00As you know, the development of the agricultural sector, from the past to the present, has been directly linked to technological advancements.
12:10For example, electrical technology, mechanical technology, and biological technology have played a significant role in contributing to and transforming agriculture.
12:24Today, following genetic technology and biotechnology, digital and artificial intelligence technologies are emerging and will transform agriculture.
12:40technologies.
12:41Here too, it's not easy for people of a certain age to adapt this to agriculture and use it in farming.
12:49But what about young people in this regard? They are more adaptable, more skillful.
12:56Here's why smart farming, agricultural products, and meat trade are more prevalent, and why they are more inclined towards alternative farming practices.
13:05When we talk about alternative agriculture, we mean things outside of conventional agriculture such as organic farming, ecological farming, vertical farming, and seedless and soilless farming.
13:16These are constantly evolving fields, and they are all related to technology.
13:21Therefore, having young people involved in agriculture will ensure faster technology transfer and the development of agriculture.
13:32On the other hand, when we look at our farmers in the classical, traditional sense,
13:38Our farmers are more interested in production.
13:43So, he spends a large part of his working hours involved in production activities.
13:49For example, he doesn't give much thought to things like product marketing or input sourcing.
13:54However, when we look at our agricultural sector, over ninety percent are small family businesses.
14:02For these businesses to be able to play a major role and be profitable in the sector, both when buying and selling, they need to come together.
14:12They need to play the role of large companies through cooperatives so that they can carry out profitable agricultural activities.
14:22In this sense, young people are more inclined to become entrepreneurs and undertake such ventures.
14:28Recently, for example, women's cooperatives have become very prominent.
14:32Young women are forming cooperatives and engaging in various activities in agriculture.
14:36When we look at that, we see the potential of young people in agriculture.
14:43That's why we say it's so important for young people to be involved in agriculture.
14:48So why aren't young people staying in agriculture?
14:52When we look at it now, we see that in the past, people, especially those in rural areas, didn't know much about the city.
14:59For example, when someone went to Istanbul or Ankara, or any of the big cities, people would gather around and find out what was going on.
15:10But nowadays, there are so many communication channels that young people are seeing life in the city.
15:17They are already living rural life, they are rural people.
15:21Therefore, cities attract young people, and once they leave the village, they don't want to return to rural areas.
15:34So what needs to happen?
15:36Efforts are important, at least in terms of bringing living and working conditions in rural areas somewhat closer to those in cities.
15:45For example, when we talk about living conditions, we mean housing, village roads, infrastructure, transportation, water, electricity, natural gas, internet, social life, health and education opportunities.
15:57Of course, there are significant developments in these areas.
16:00But these things need to happen faster.
16:06For example, sir, TOKI, you know, they build big apartment buildings in city centers.
16:11Even if village settlements were built, such a founder would probably make a contribution.
16:17Yes, they need to be planned.
16:20For example, we are building roads, but we have a lot of problems with roads within the villages.
16:25Things like that.
16:29When we talk about working conditions, we mean terrain accessibility, use of technology, sustainable and adequate income, and social security.
16:37All of this is negatively affecting young people.
16:44I went to Finland many years ago.
16:49We visited a farm there.
16:53The farm owner has a son who is in high school.
16:57That's what his father says about the school.
17:00He finishes school.
17:01So as soon as classes are over, he comes straight to the farm.
17:03Why?
17:04Very large tractors, technology, I mean, getting on that tractor.
17:10After that, for example, he works in the barn.
17:12Even cleaning the barn is done with advanced technology.
17:16For example, even cows feel uncomfortable when their automatic udders fill with milk.
17:25He enters the automated self-defense machine.
17:27It provides it there.
17:30The machine connects automatically.
17:32Then, when he relaxes, he leaves.
17:34So I observed this advanced technology there.
17:37What are the young people doing?
17:39It's appealing to live in the countryside.
17:41We already know that, right?
17:42Young people are always interested in technology.
17:45So there are indeed developments regarding these conditions.
17:50But for these things to go much further, the gap between rural and urban life would narrow, or living in the countryside would have additional advantages
18:02Highlighting its more attractive aspects and making young people believe in it.
18:08Ultimately, the solution to preventing this migration lies in improving living and working conditions in rural areas.
18:19So how do we attract young people to rural areas?
18:23We said that we need to improve working and living conditions in rural areas.
18:28I use this expression a lot.
18:30Actually, this is about rural development.
18:32What we call rural development is essentially about improving working and living conditions in rural areas.
18:38Of course, when we improve working and living conditions in rural areas, we achieve two things.
18:43We are improving both the living conditions and employment opportunities of the population employed in agriculture.
18:50And we are also ensuring that people stay in rural areas, as we mentioned earlier, that this is a danger.
18:57Actually, when people stay in rural areas and there are more of them, social life also improves, right?
19:03Educational opportunities also improve.
19:05Other opportunities will also improve.
19:07But nothing can develop where there are no people.
19:12There will be no movement.
19:13People are then forced to abandon agricultural activities.
19:20So it would be encouraging for them to give them up.
19:25So how is this going to happen here?
19:29In fact, from kindergarten to high school, we teach young people about the importance of agriculture, its attractive aspects,
19:40It describes and encourages agriculture as the profession of the future or as something that will continue to exist in the future.
19:47For example, in kindergarten as games, or as a topic in science class in elementary school,
19:57In middle school and high school, I remember we had a subject called agriculture in our high school years.
20:04Yes, there was one; I even have a copy of it here, a book that was used in high schools back in the day.
20:16There are developments regarding this now, but it needs to be more serious and systematic.
20:22Secondly, there needs to be special incentive policies for young people in agriculture.
20:31There are supported policies related to these issues, aimed at young people, but these need to be multifaceted.
20:38So if there's a problem, there are many reasons that caused it.
20:45You need to shed light on each of those reasons in order to solve the problem.
20:50So you can't solve a problem by just grasping at the root of its cause.
20:54Increasing these incentive policies is not just the responsibility of the ministry,
20:59The European Union also provides support in this regard.
21:04There are development agencies, there are local governments.
21:07Here, together with you, we have seen the importance that Erzurum Metropolitan Municipality attaches to this issue.
21:16There are other sources.
21:18All these resources need to work together in some way.
21:22Why?
21:22They need to offer attractive opportunities to keep young people in agriculture.
21:29Facilities for social security.
21:32Now, sometimes this happens.
21:35Someone goes to the city and finds a job somewhere.
21:39So, they're working for minimum wage, but because they have social security, they can immediately take on that job with social protection.
21:47To prevent this, there are, of course, certain social security opportunities available today for people living in rural areas, in villages, and engaged in agriculture.
21:56Making it a little easier, perhaps even cheaper, for those in rural areas through positive discrimination might be beneficial.
22:06Why do families migrate to cities?
22:10So that my children can go to a better school.
22:14After primary school, through middle school, high school, and even university.
22:19Therefore, we need to make it easier to access educational opportunities as well.
22:24For example, it's important to apply positive discrimination when someone working in a rural area wants to receive a scholarship or other opportunities.
22:37And of course, there are the young people, sir.
22:41Professor, you mentioned social security, and I think it would be better if this social security system were structured around women, through female empowerment.
22:48So, it would be beneficial if young people getting married, especially women, were provided with social security in the village, because women don't go to the village.
22:58So, first of all, one of the main problems in rural areas is that no matter how well-off the child is, they can't get married.
23:06So, there's a problem with getting married today.
23:07But if you were to provide this woman with social security, I don't know, would she come?
23:13I'm not entirely sure, but I think something like that might happen.
23:16Well, these are just some of my precautions.
23:20As I said, if there's a problem, you need to address it comprehensively, taking all of the measures we've listed together.
23:25What you said is important too; for example, my brother-in-law lived in the district center.
23:31He has a tractor, he has a car, he has a house.
23:34Despite this, we couldn't find girls for them to marry off because 7-8 of them lived in the countryside.
23:40Everyone comes and sets a condition.
23:43They had a house in Erzurum, so I said, "Suleyman, come and stay here for a while so they can see you living in the city."
23:50So we can give you a house.
23:51I experienced this firsthand.
23:53Therefore, that issue you mentioned is important.
23:56So the reason why young people, even men, don't stay in rural areas is because they can't have the marriage they want.
24:06That also presents itself as a serious problem.
24:10Now, in addition to attracting young people living in rural areas and engaged in agriculture, we need to train agricultural engineers, veterinarians, and water experts who will become leaders and experts in agriculture and guide the agricultural sector.
24:27Product engineer, food engineer, forestry engineer.
24:31All of these require efforts to attract high-yield production.
24:37Because if a sector lacks leaders, that sector cannot progress very far.
24:42Why are we so advanced in the field of healthcare in Türkiye today?
24:46We are competing with the world; our health tourism is developing, and we are truly achieving significant successes in the field of health.
24:55Because what are the smartest kids in the country doing?
24:58They go to medical schools, complete their higher education there, and that capacity ultimately yields results like this.
25:10Therefore, we...
25:11So we need the normal model then, right sir?
25:14Yes, I'll tell her about it too.
25:16I now have the same perspective as I did during my faculty years.
25:21The level is steadily decreasing.
25:24So, honestly, the student numbers are pretty low right now...
25:30What causes this?
25:31This stems from the fact that students do not demand higher education in agriculture.
25:37This affects academic life.
25:41It affects institutional life, that is, the Ministry of Agriculture or related institutions.
25:46It affects NGOs.
25:50If you notice, for quite some time now, our Ministers of Agriculture have always come from institutions different from our higher education system.
26:01This also shows us a bit about the lack of leadership.
26:06It also affects the agricultural sector.
26:09So it affects the private sector as well.
26:11So this trend affects all areas related to agriculture.
26:17When I was a ministerial advisor in 2003-2004, Sami Güçlü was our minister at the time.
26:24I talked to her about it a lot.
26:27So, for example, let's do it this way: just like the Ministry of National Education gives scholarships to those who choose education faculties as their top five choices, we can do it this way...
26:41The ministry should also provide strong support to agricultural higher education.
26:46They've introduced some incentives recently, but of course, these aren't enough.
26:51Therefore, we need to increase the attractiveness of agricultural higher education.
26:57There are studies of this type around the world.
27:00We need to have these things too.
27:02As I said, I mentioned it a moment ago.
27:05From kindergarten to high school, we need to increase awareness of the appeal of agriculture and its strategic importance in higher education.
27:16Secondly, there are scholarship opportunities, internship opportunities, and job guarantees provided by the ministry and related institutions.
27:26Do you remember during my student years, very successful students were given scholarships and guaranteed jobs by some institutions?
27:35These opportunities should be increased for successful students.
27:41I am not aware of the scholarship, job, and internship opportunities offered by local governments for Agricultural Higher Education in that province. Konya Metropolitan Municipality is relevant in this regard.
27:52He must be doing something.
27:56They need to improve these.
27:59Naturally, improving practical training and the quality of education in agricultural higher education, as well as internationalization, are key aspects.
28:06You asked at the beginning, and this does have an effect, too.
28:10So, how does it affect things like this?
28:13The best way to promote a faculty, a university, or a college is through its students.
28:19If a student is satisfied with the school they attend and the quality of education, they are the best person to advertise it.
28:30Therefore, improving the quality of education in faculties related to agricultural higher education is very important.
28:41But as I said earlier, the level is getting lower and lower.
28:44Now, the student's level is also important.
28:46Now, you may want to give a student a lot, but if the student's level isn't suitable, you can't.
28:55You need to step back a little, back again.
28:58Academics are ultimately chosen from among the students.
29:02So how do all these things interact with each other?
29:05It's effective.
29:07The topic of role models that you mentioned earlier is also important.
29:10For example, there aren't many TV series, short films, or programs in the media or on social media that feature people involved in agriculture or agricultural leaders.
29:24For example, we go to bed, we get up.
29:26Medical schools don't have such a need.
29:28But we watch a lot of TV shows about doctors, right?
29:32Where there are doctors.
29:34But for example, an agricultural engineer, a veterinarian, a forestry engineer, an aquaculture engineer,
29:43The point is that these series are appealing, successful, and demonstrate that there are actually revenue-generating sectors within them.
29:52For example, TRT, at least as a public institution, and I sometimes bring this up with them as well.
30:02But unfortunately, there are no visible steps being taken regarding that.
30:09It seems they don't participate in every project.
30:11Sir?
30:12Ratings would drop for that kind of language, so I think that's why they're not doing it.
30:16But we'll have to wait and see, maybe it will increase.
30:20Even if it means a drop in ratings for the sake of public interest, I think we have to start somewhere.
30:27Ultimately, the agricultural sector also needs to become a sustainable and profitable sector in order to attract people.
30:38So, in a sector where there are risks, uncertainties, sudden drops in income, and instability, people can endure for a while.
30:49Then they'll let go, I guess.
30:53Therefore, in this sense, I call it proactive to implement agricultural policies in a very forward-thinking way.
31:05Proactive agricultural policies, by which I mean proactive, those that anticipate the problem.
31:12So here comes the problem.
31:14Before you arrive.
31:15So what do we usually do now?
31:17Problems arise, they end, we experience difficulties.
31:19Then we develop policies.
31:22However, it's about anticipating the problem and being proactive.
31:24These policies apply in the financial sector as well, and they apply in banking as well.
31:30The same should be true in the agricultural sector; it is important to implement policies that reduce risks and uncertainties in the agricultural sector and decrease income.
31:46If we summarize...
31:49Professor, we're running short on time, please let's wrap things up.
31:52Okay, let's wrap things up.
31:54First, we need to improve working and living conditions in agriculture.
31:59Furthermore, providing multifaceted incentives to encourage young people to stay in rural areas and engage in agriculture is crucial.
32:09So these mornings need to continue in a multifaceted way.
32:12In the agricultural sector, in bureaucracy and academia, and in NGOs, agricultural leaders must be capable and well-trained so that they can take agriculture much further.
32:30This is the other side of the coin.
32:32Thirdly, young people engaged in and living in rural areas can contribute to both rural development and the growth of the agricultural sector through the guidance of capable agricultural leaders.
32:49They can provide it.
32:50Only in this way can we move the agricultural sector forward.
32:55As with every field, when it comes to the future of agriculture and rural areas, I return to my initial statement.
33:02But only young people will be able to build it.
33:05Because they are young and will want to build their futures under better conditions.
33:11Now, a man who is 60-70-80 years old says, "My foot is already in the grave, what can I improve? It's just what I inherited from my ancestors."
33:21If I've seen it this way, I'm leaving the way I came.
33:24But a young person aged 20-25 has 40 years ahead of them; they can get married and provide for their family in better circumstances.
33:33So what will he do?
33:35It will strive to improve its current conditions, which will automatically reflect positively on agriculture.
33:43This is an important factor.
33:44Secondly, as I mentioned earlier, they are more open to innovation.
33:50We all learn from the habits of people who have now reached a certain age.
33:56Getting our mothers, fathers, grandfathers, and grandmothers to give up those habits was very difficult, and of course, getting ourselves to give them up was very hard at that time.
34:07But young people are more open to innovation.
34:12They are adept and willing to use advanced technology.
34:15Agricultural development also occurs through the transfer of technology to agriculture.
34:23As in its historical development.
34:26Therefore, to make this transfer happen, we need young players.
34:30So, what would be done to improve the future of agriculture and rural areas?
34:37It will be guaranteed.
34:40Thank you for watching.
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