Agriculture

Agriculture is the bedrock of their economy for many of our FII countries, contributing heavily to GDP and employing sizable populations of people. Agricultural workers tend to be poorer, less financially included, and older than workers in other sectors as well as the population as a whole. The number of adults who say their primary job is as a farmer, farm worker, or farm owner ranges from one in five in Nigeria (21%) to more than one in three adults in Tanzania (38%).

In every FII country, farmers are more likely than the overall population to fall below the poverty line and fare worse than adults with jobs other than farming. Those working in agriculture are less likely to be financially included compared with those who hold jobs in other sectors. In all but two countries (India and Kenya), farmers lag all adults in financial inclusion. Agricultural workers in each of the FII countries are older, on average, than all adults and those with jobs outside of farming.