Prioritising Agripreneurial Skills Required for Farm Youth: A Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Approach

The present research attempts to prioritise the agripreneurial skills essential for farm youth to successfully run agripreneurship. The various agripreneurial skill dimensions and specific agripreneurial skills of farm youth were identified and compared through paired comparison method by the key experts. The weights for agripreneurial skills were then estimated and analysed by using a multi-criteria decision-making technique called fuzzy analytic hierarchy process. The agriprenurial skill dimensions and individual skills were also prioritised based on estimated weights. The research sample in the survey location consisted of rural youth of the state of Odisha, India. The sample size was estimated to be 250 individuals based on the selection criteria by purposive sampling technique from the five different agro-climatic zones. Strategic thinking skill dimensions were ascertained as the most important in priority order while opportunity recognition skills, resilience, agripreneurial motivation, agribusiness planning, and strong decision-making skills were prioritised as the top five essential skillsets crucial for the success of agri-enterprise. Perseverance, agri-logistic management, and effective communication were found to be more deficient among youth. These required prioritised agripreneurial skills can act as an instrument to screen the farm youth for agripreneurship orientation programs.