Agriculture sector

Agriculture is one of the world’s most important sectors. It feeds populations, supplies raw materials to countless industries, and powers economic growth through employment and exports. Its development is also one of the most powerful tools for reducing poverty. The World Bank estimates that agricultural growth is two to three times more effective at lifting people out of poverty than growth in any other sector, with the most significant impact felt by the poorest communities.

A 2024 report from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (UNFAO) indicates that the global production of primary crops reached 9.9 billion tonnes in 2023, increasing by 3% since 2022 and 28% since 2010. The report notes that in 2023, the world produced 2.1 billion tonnes of fruits and vegetables, compared to 872 million tonnes of major oil crops and 321 million tonnes of meat from chicken, pork and beef. The agricultural sector contributed an estimated €228.3 billion towards the EU’s overall GDP in 2024.

The agricultural sector employs an estimated 28% of the total labour force globally and accounts for approximately 60% of the labour force in low-income countries. The agriculture industry is associated with numerous human rights and environmental risks, including, but not limited to, labour rights violations, discrimination against migrant workers, infringement of indigenous peoples’ land rights, and challenges related to food security and biodiversity loss.

The UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) require businesses to identify, assess, mitigate and remediate human rights risks in their operations and value chains. As the commentary to Guiding Principle 17 explains, if due diligence on every individual relationship is impossible, “business enterprises should identify general areas where the risk of adverse human rights impacts is most significant, whether due to certain suppliers’ or clients’ operating context, the particular operations, products or services involved, or other relevant considerations, and prioritize these for human rights due diligence”. This would include, for example, agricultural products sourced from suppliers in an area known for its use of child labour. In doing so, businesses should consider effectively issues of gender, vulnerability and/or marginalisation, and recognise the specific challenges that may be faced by indigenous peoples, women, national or ethnic minorities, religious and linguistic minorities, children, persons with disabilities, and migrant workers and their families.

In 2019, the United Nations adopted the Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and Other People Working in Rural Areas, recognising the rights of individuals engaged in agricultural activities such as small-scale or artisanal farming, crop cultivation, livestock raising, and forestry. The declaration also covers all migrant and seasonal workers who are employed on plantations, farms, forests, aquaculture sites, and agro-industrial enterprises.

Agriculture is an industry highly prone to human rights and environmental risks. Many agricultural workers work in hazardous and unhealthy conditions, are poorly paid, and are denied their fundamental rights, such as freedom of association and collective bargaining. Agrochemicals can pose significant health risks to farm and agricultural workers. The ILO highlights the agriculture industry as one of the most hazardous sectors, causing many agricultural workers to suffer occupational accidents and ill health each year. In 2011, the ILO published guidance on safety and health in agriculture, taking into account the gender dimensions of occupational health and safety in agriculture (See the Issue page on Workers’ rights and Freedom of association for more information).

2014 Human Rights Watch research on hazardous child labour in the United States Tobacco Farming, based on interviews with agricultural workers, documents cases such as a 13-year-old girl who felt faint while working 12-hour shifts in a tobacco plant, and an eighth grader whose eyes burned and itched when a farmer sprayed pesticides in a nearby field. According to the 2024 global estimates of child labour published by the ILO and UNICEF in 2025, agriculture accounts for the largest share of child labour, at 61% globally. Most of this labour takes place as part of family subsistence and on smallholder farms, where younger children in child labour, both boys and girls, are overwhelmingly found in agriculture. The 2024 estimates also raise concerns about how climate change exacerbates the working conditions faced by children in agriculture, as they are increasingly exposed to heat stress, insect-borne diseases, dust, wildfires, and heavier use of pesticides, all of which pose serious risks to their health, development, and overall well-being.

The ILO highlights that progress in eliminating child labour in the agricultural industry has remained slow due to several root causes, such as poverty and inequality. Other factors include “limited coverage of agriculture and family undertakings in national labour legislations, limited unionization, fragmentation of the labour force, low capacity of labour inspectors to cover remote rural areas, majority of child labourers working as unpaid family labour without formal contracts, continuity between rural household and the workplace, and traditions of children participating in agricultural activities from a young age”. In January 2025, the Fair Labor Association published a new “Guidance on Preventing and Addressing Child Labor in Supply Chains” (See the Issue page on Children’s rights for more information).

The UN Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons highlighted in its 2022 report “Trafficking in persons in the agriculture sector: human rights due diligence and sustainable development” that trafficking in persons, particularly for purposes of forced labour, is a grave concern in the agricultural sector that affects both adults and children. The report finds that the high prevalence of forced labour in agriculture is driven mainly by informality and weak oversight. It further notes that the isolation of agricultural work heightens risks for refugees, internally displaced persons, and migrants in irregular situations, who often lack the legal right to work and are therefore limited to informal employment, such as agricultural day labour.

For example, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime Global Report on Trafficking in Persons 2024 indicates that forced labour and trafficking have been reported in agricultural supply chains in Africa, particularly in coca production, cotton harvesting and rice. The US Bureau of International Labor Affairs maintains a list of goods that it believes are produced with child or forced labour, that includes many agricultural products such as rice, cocoa, coffee and sugarcane (See the Issue page on Forced labour & modern slavery for more information).

The agriculture industry heavily relies on migrant workers. According to the UN Network on Migration, of the 281 million international migrants, 169 million work across agricultural value chains, carrying out more than a quarter of the farm work in many countries. Migrant workers face numerous human rights risks, including high rates of working poverty, informal or casual arrangements, food insecurity, lack of access to healthcare and social protection, malnutrition, poor health, and inadequate safety and labour protections. They also often cannot exercise their right to freedom of association. As a result, they are particularly vulnerable to exploitation and abuse, including human trafficking. These adverse impacts disproportionately affect women and children. The Commentary to the Guiding Principle 12 highlights that businesses, in addition to the core human rights standards, may need to consider United Nations instruments on migrant workers and their families. (See the Issue page on Migrant workers for more information).

Women are estimated to own less than 20% of the world’s land, despite comprising approximately 43% of the agricultural workforce. While women constitute 66% of Africa’s agricultural workforce, they account for 71% of farm workers in Asia. A 2023 report by the UNFAO shows that women’s working conditions in the agricultural industry are typically worse than those of men. Women are more likely to be in irregular, informal, part-time, and low-skilled positions that require intense physical labour, making them highly vulnerable. This applies to both primary agricultural production and off-farm segments of agrifood systems. The report further notes that women are disproportionately affected by climate-related shocks and conflict, yet they earn on average 18.4% less than men in agricultural wage employment.

While women lack the right to maternity leave, childcare and social security as farmworkers, they also face gender-based violence and sexual harassment in the work environment. A 2020 report by the UN Women highlights research documenting widespread sexual harassment of migrant farmworkers in high-income countries, as well as in low- and middle-income countries. Pesticides used in agricultural fields also disproportionately impact women and their sexual and reproductive rights. The US Center for Disease Control and Prevention indicates that exposure to pesticides can affect peoples’ hormones and fertility, and exposure during pregnancy might cause problems like miscarriage and birth defects. The Gender Guidance to the UNGPs advises businesses to map workers who are part of their supply chains, identify gender-specific issues and take appropriate steps to address these issues (See the Issue page on Gender & women’s rights and Equality & non-discrimination for more information).

As the Interpretive Guide to the UNGPs recognises, “agribusiness enterprises often invest in land for new agricultural activities. This land may be inhabited or used by communities for their livelihoods, whether or not they are recognised as having legal title. This creates a particular risk for the right of the individuals concerned to an adequate standard of living.” A 2023 study found that industrial development, which includes agricultural expansion, threatens nearly 60% of Indigenous Peoples’ lands in 64 countries. Also called land-grabbing, the large-scale acquisition of Indigenous Peoples’ lands for commercial or industrial purposes, such as agricultural and biofuel production, “denies indigenous peoples access to their primary source of livelihood, and leads to deforestation and to an alteration in the biodiversity of their ancestral lands and territories.” For example, in 2024, the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights sent a letter to the Ocho Sur group, expressing concerns over Ocho Sur’s oil palm plantation on indigenous lands in Ucayali, Peru, in the Peruvian Amazon. The letter focused on allegations made by community members related to the “deforestation of 7,216 hectares for the installation of oil palm plantations on the community’s ancestral territory without their free, prior and informed consent; increased land trafficking and deforestation on the community’s traditional lands; threats, intimidation, acts of harassment and attacks against Indigenous leaders and defenders since 2014 for asserting their territorial rights”, among others. The UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), adopted in 2007, recognises land rights as an essential human rights issue for indigenous peoples. Similarly, the ILO Convention 169 concerning indigenous and tribal peoples requires governments to respect the cultures and spiritual values of the peoples concerned, as well as their relationship with the lands or territories (See the Issue pages on Land and Indigenous Peoples for more information).

UNESCO’s 2022 UN World Water Development Report warns that excessive groundwater extraction for agriculture is increasingly alarming in some regions, as it risks jeopardising food security, essential water access, climate resilience, and the health of ecosystems that depend on groundwater. Another concern is the agriculture industry’s negative impact on biodiversity. The UNDP warns that the increasing privatisation and widespread use of commercial seeds are reducing agricultural biodiversity in developing countries. The UNDP’s 2012 guidance also highlights that commercial and industrial breeders may promote monocultures, which can threaten food security and undermine the livelihoods and human rights of farmers.

In its December 2021 report, the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to food notes that four agrochemical companies control 60% of the global seed market and 75% of the global pesticide market, resulting in intense control over seed varieties, as well as pricing and distribution metrics. The report further notes that the same four companies produce most of the agrochemicals associated with genetically modified seeds, which pollute the environment and reduce biodiversity, thereby lowering agricultural resilience and making farms more vulnerable to climate change shocks. The report warns that industrial agricultural practices measure productivity not in terms of human or environmental health, but exclusively in terms of commodity output and economic growth. Concerns over corporate power in food systems were also raised within the July 2025 report published by the Special Rapporteur on the right to food. The report raises concerns that corporate-led agricultural systems’ drive for expansion through large-scale land use results in widespread air, soil, and water pollution, greenhouse gas emissions, biodiversity loss, exploitative labour practices, and systemic human rights violations. For example, Greenpeace International reports that agriculture is responsible for approximately 80 % of global deforestation. It also notes that animal agriculture, including livestock and feed production, is a major contributor not only to deforestation but also to about 60% of direct global greenhouse gas emissions.

The EU adopted the Deforestation Regulation to address deforestation linked to the expansion of agricultural land to produce commodities, such as cattle, wood, cocoa, soy, palm oil, coffee, rubber, and some of their derived products, including leather, chocolate, tyres, and furniture. Under the Regulation, businesses must ensure that their products (i) are deforestation-free, (ii) have been produced per the relevant legislation of the country of production, which includes i.e., the laws on labour rights, human rights protected under international law, the principle of free, prior, and informed consent, and land use rights (iii) are covered by a due diligence statement (See the Danish Institute for Human Rights – How do the Pieces Fit in the Puzzle? publication for more information).

The legislative instruments developed at the regional level of EU as well as national level in various countries also include mandatory human rights and environmental due diligence (mHREDD) laws, such as the French Duty of Vigilance Law (2017), German Act on Corporate Due Diligence Obligations in Supply Chain (2021), Norwegian Transparency Act (2021) and the EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (2024). These laws mandate companies to undertake human rights and environmental due diligence in their operations and supply chains, including with regard to human rights risks prevalent in agricultural supply chains, such as forced labour, child labour, non-discrimination, freedom of association, fair wages, and an adequate living wage. Similarly, non-financial reporting obligations often require companies to disclose their performance and the measures they take to address actual and potential human rights impacts in their operations and supply chains (See the Issue page on Mandatory human rights due diligence and Non-financial reporting for more information).

Worker-driven social responsibility programs, such as the Coalition of Immokalee Workers’ Fair Food Program, use a worker-led model to ensure fair wages and safe working conditions for farmworkers. They can serve as valuable guidance for businesses in implementing human rights and environmental due diligence in agricultural supply chains. Multi-stakeholder initiatives, such as the Fair Trade and Ethical Trading Initiative, also bring together multiple stakeholders to facilitate the due diligence process, share information on human rights risks, and collectively pool resources to address challenges. In 2023, the Ethical Trading Initiative launched a pilot project aimed at increasing access to grievance mechanisms for vulnerable workers in the agricultural supply chains of Italy and Spain.

Agriculture is central to achieving the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda and multiple Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) because it sits at the intersection of people, food, livelihoods, and the environment. It directly advances SDG 2 (Zero Hunger) by increasing food production and improving nutrition. By generating employment and income for nearly 28% of the global workforce, agriculture also supports SDG 1 (No Poverty) and SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth). Through better access to diverse and nutritious foods, it contributes to SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being).

Sustainable agriculture practices can help reduce soil erosion and improve land productivity by reinforcing SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) and SDG 15 (Life on Land), thereby protecting natural resources and biodiversity. Climate-smart agriculture mitigates greenhouse gas emissions and enhances resilience to droughts and floods, aligning with SDG 13 (Climate Action). As women constitute a majority of the agricultural workforce, addressing challenges they face, such as limited access to and control over land, finance, technology, education, and economic opportunities, helps break down gender disparities in rural communities and contribute to the realisation of SDG 5 (Gender Equality). The UNFAO provided guidelines for decision-makers to facilitate transformation to sustainable and resilient agriculture and food systems in line with the 2030 Agenda (See the Issue page on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development for more information).

References

The UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
The UN Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and Other People Working in Rural Areas.
World Bank, Agriculture and Food.
UNFAO, Agricultural production statistics: 2010–2023.
Eurostat, Performance of the agricultural sector.
ILO, Agriculture, aquaculture, plantations.
UNODC, Global Report on Trafficking in Persons 2020.
BSR, Four Human Rights Issues Every Food and Agriculture Company Needs to Understand, (2013).
ILO, Safety and health in agriculture.
Human Rights Watch, Tobacco’s Hidden Children: Hazardous Child Labor in United States Tobacco Farming, (13 May 2024).
ILO and UNICEF, Child Labour: Global Estimates 2024, Trends and The Road Forward, (2024).
ILO, Child labour in agriculture.
Fair Labor Association, Guidance on Preventing and Addressing Child Labor in Supply Chains, (2025).
The UN Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, Trafficking in persons in the agriculture sector: human rights due diligence and sustainable development, (2022).
UNODC, Global Report on Trafficking in Persons
The US Bureau of International Labor Affairs, List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor.
UN Network on Migration, Towards Sustainable Food Systems: the Critical Role of Migrants.
Gates Foundation, The Critical Reason to Close Gender Gaps in Agriculture, (24 September 2024).
UNFAO, The Status of Women in Agrifood Systems, (2023).
UN Women, Sexual Harassment in the Informal Economy: Farmworkers and domestic workers, (2020)
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, About Pesticides and Reproductive Health.
OHCHR and UNDP, Gender Dimensions of the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
OHCHR, The Corporate Responsibility to Respect Human Rights: An Interpretive Guide.
M. Kennedy and others, Indigenous Peoples’ lands are threatened by industrial development; conversion risk assessment reveals need to support Indigenous stewardship, (2023) One Earth, Volume 6, Issue 8.
IWGIA, Indigenous Peoples’ Rights to Land: The Threat of Land Grabbing.
Forest Peoples Programme, Ocho Sur oil palm plantation in Peru challenged by UN experts for violations of Indigenous rights and environmental damage, (2024).
The UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, (2007).
ILO, C169 – Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention (No. 169), (1989).
UNESCO, 2022 UN World Water Development Report.
EU Deforestation Regulation.
The French Duty of Vigilance Law(2017).
German Act on Corporate Due Diligence Obligations in Supply Chain(2021).
Norwegian Transparency Act (2021).
The EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (2024).
The Coalition of Immokalee Workers’ Fair Food Program.
Ethical Trading Initiative, Grievance mechanisms in agriculture.
UNDP, Towards a Human Rights-Based Approach to Food Security: A Self-Assessment Tool to Achieve Balanced Plant Regimes, (2015).
OHCHR, Seeds: central to people’s food systems, cultures and human rights, (2022).
Report of the Special Rapporteur on the right to food: Corporate power and human rights in food systems, UN Doc. A/80/213, (21 July 2025).
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UNFAO, Transforming Food and Agriculture to Achieve the SDGs.

What National Action Plans say on Agriculture sector

Ghana (2025 - 2029)

CHAPTER 3: BUSINESS AND HUMAN RIGHTS SITUATIONAL

ANALYSIS

3.2.2 Agriculture Sector

Agriculture is key to the overall economic growth and development of Ghana. Since 2013, it has consistently contributed about 20 percent of Ghana’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).³⁵ This sector is estimated to employ about 46 percent of Ghana’s labour force³⁶, most of whom are small landowners engaged mainly in subsistence farming. Some issues identified in this sector are summarized in the table below:

Worst forms of child labour

Forced labour

Compulsory acquisition of farmlands without adequate compensation to land and crop owners

Destruction of farmlands due illegal mining (galamsey) activities, commercial activities and urbanization

Pollution of water bodies due to illegal mining (galamsey) activities

Under scaling of cocoa produce by purchasing clerks and purchasing companies

Destruction of farmlands by herdsmen