Millennials Are Getting Coaxed Into the Grueling World of Indonesian Farming

When Indonesia unveiled a plan to turn 2.5 million millennials into farmers within five years, it was a big ask. Success would mean reversing a global trend where tech-savvy youngsters were being lured away from rural areas to exciting startups and city jobs. So far, the results are encouraging.

Despite a tropical climate and some of the largest swathes of fertile land in Southeast Asia, the country’s farms often lack the capital, expertise and technology to run efficiently. Farming families earn an average of 26.6 million rupiah ($1,876) a year — about half the minimum wage — and the work is demanding, insecure and subject to the vagaries of weather.