Download or read book An evolving paradigm of agricultural mechanization development How much can Africa learn from Asia written by Diao, Xinshen, ed. and published by Intl Food Policy Res Inst. This book was released on 2020-12-07 with total page 548 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Agricultural mechanization in Africa south of the Sahara — especially for small farms and businesses — requires a new paradigm to meet the needs of the continent’s evolving farming systems. Can Asia, with its recent success in adopting mechanization, offer a model for Africa? An Evolving Paradigm of Agricultural Mechanization Development analyzes the experiences of eight Asian and five African countries. The authors explore crucial government roles in boosting and supporting mechanization, from import policies to promotion policies to public good policies. Potential approaches presented to facilitating mechanization in Africa include prioritizing market-led hiring services, eliminating distortions, and developing appropriate technologies for the African context. The role of agricultural mechanization within overall agricultural and rural transformation strategies in Africa is also discussed. The book’s recommendations and insights should be useful to national policymakers and the development community, who can adapt this knowledge to local contexts and use it as a foundation for further research.
Download or read book Building Construction Before Mechanization written by John Fitchen and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 1989-04-03 with total page 345 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How were huge stones moved from quarries to the sites of Egyptian pyramids? How did the cathedral builders of the Middle Ages lift blocks to great heights by muscle power alone? In this intriguing book John Fitchen explains and illustrates the solutions to these and many other puzzles in preindustrial building construction. This is the first general survey of the practices and role of the builder (as opposed to the designer) in constructing an array of structures. Fitchen's approach gives a valuable hands-on feel for what it's like to work with ropes and ladders, wedges and slings; with crews engaged in well digging, bridge building, and the transporting of obelisks hundreds of miles by water and over land. The buildings discussed range from the tents, tepees, and igloos of nomadic tribes to the monumental pyramids of Egypt, the temples of Greece, the aqueducts of Rome, and the cathedrals of medieval Europe.
Download or read book Sustainable agricultural mechanization in China written by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and published by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. This book was released on 2023-01-20 with total page 168 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Sustainable agricultural mechanization covers all levels of farming and processing technologies, and takes into consideration technological, economic, social, environmental and cultural aspects when contributing to the sustainable development of agrifood systems. This publication strives to comprehensively and systematically summarize the status and strategies of China's agricultural mechanization development, its impacts, experiences and practices, and business models. Furthermore, the publication investigates the related investment and policy recommendations to reach the goal of agricultural and rural modernization by 2035, to drive smallholder farmers to enter modern agriculture, and to achieve sustainable development. It is estimated that by 2035, agricultural production in China will predominantly be mechanized. The concept of integrating mechanization and digitalization will be applied to agricultural mechanization management and operation monitoring and services, and mechanization will comprehensively support all agricultural and rural modernization. The development of sustainable agricultural mechanization in China provides cases and examples of innovations with global value, not only for developing countries but in particular for middle-income countries and emerging countries.
Download or read book Agricultural mechanization policy options in Rwanda written by Takeshima, Hiroyuki and published by Intl Food Policy Res Inst. This book was released on 2024-05-13 with total page 24 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This paper summarizes general demand- and supply-side issues for agricultural mechanization based on recent studies that focus on experiences and evidence from both Africa and Asia. The paper pro vides typologies of agricultural mechanization in Rwanda along with policy options within the context of its current mechanization support strategies. Provincial variations in agroecology and cropping systems, irrigated/rainfed systems, farm size, and labor use intensity, among other factors, characterize the key types of mechanization use in Rwanda. Support for mechanization in Rwanda can be broadly tailored to (a) irrigated medium-scale farmers in the Eastern province and Kigali; (b) rainfed medium-scale farmers in the Eastern and Southern provinces; (c) rainfed, small-scale highland farmers in the Northern province; and (d) irrigated small-scale farmers in the Western province. Recent experiences in other countries with rugged terrain and smallholder farming systems similar to Rwanda suggest that significant growth in the use of tractors is possible in the medium term among smallholders cultivating rainfed maize and legumes, in addition to irrigated rice. However, farm wages may still be too low in Rwanda and tractor-hiring fees may still be too high to induce a shift to mechanization in the short term. Therefore, it may be advisable for policy support for mechanization to focus on improving the understanding of mechanization needs among each type of farmers identified, knowledge of suitable machines, and required skills for their operations and maintenance. Such efforts should also balance the need to develop competitive markets and supply networks for promising machines, parts, and repair services at a viable and integrated market scale.
Download or read book Agricultural mechanization and agricultural transformation written by Diao, Xinshen and published by Intl Food Policy Res Inst. This book was released on 2016-04-29 with total page 56 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A renewed focus on agriculture’s potential contribution to economic transformation in Africa has resulted in increased attention paid to agricultural mechanization. African agriculture still relies predominantly on human muscle power despite anecdotal evidence on urbanization and rising rural wages, in contrast to other developing regions that have experienced rapid increases in agricultural mechanization during the past few decades. Past state-led mechanization pushes in Africa often failed due to insufficient understanding of the nature of demand for mechanization technologies among farmers and insufficient knowledge of private-sector functions. This background paper reviews the factors likely to influence farmer demand for mechanization in Africa and details different existing and potential mechanization supply models. Although an empirical analysis of mechanization demand and the effectiveness of supply chains is beyond the scope of this paper, in part due to data limitations, this paper suggests that demand for mechanization may be emerging in some parts of Africa. It also suggests that private-sector-driven supply models are better positioned to meet this demand than direct government involvement and certain types of subsidized programs. The paper then identifies possible areas for government support to complement private-sector leadership in developing mechanization supply chains. Nevertheless, significant further research is required to better understand the changing nature of mechanization demand in Africa and the extent and effectiveness of different supply models in meeting it.
Download or read book Consequences of Small farm Mechanization written by International Rice Research Institute and published by Int. Rice Res. Inst.. This book was released on 1983 with total page 193 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Profitability Mechanization and Economies of Scale written by Dudley Jackson and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2018-10-03 with total page 334 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: First published in 1998, this book introduces a new concept of profitability, called the 'efficiency rate of profit', which is defined as the ratio between the unit net margin and the unit capital requirement and shows how the efficiency rate of profit may be used in the assessment of mechanization and economies of scale. The book also shows how the efficiency rate of profit relates to the financial opportunity cost of investment, thus resolving the long-standing controversy over 'interest as a cost'. Using real-world plant-level data, the book explains fully the process of mechanization, how increasing returns to scale works at the plant level through power rule relating plant or equipment cost to capacity and how and why it is more cost effective to combine mechanization with expanding the scale of production in one combined 'package' of efficiency improvement.
Download or read book Can the private sector lead agricultural mechanization in Ghana written by Houssou, Nazaire and published by Intl Food Policy Res Inst. This book was released on 2014-09-01 with total page 4 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Increasing agricultural mechanization has long been of interest to many African countries. Constrained by the limited area that can be cultivated through the use of the hand hoe and its association with perceptions of primitiveness and drudgery, agricultural mechanization and large-scale farming have long been a part of the vision of modernizing agriculture in many African countries, including Ghana.
Download or read book Review of and recommendations for Custom Hiring Centers for mechanization in Nepal and the Asian region written by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and published by Food & Agriculture Org.. This book was released on 2021-12-29 with total page 40 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This document serves as a review of mechanization Custom Hiring Centers (CHCs) in the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal (Nepal) and the Asian region and presents a set of recommendations for their sustainable management. The report begins with a brief historical background of Custom Hiring Centers (CHCs) and current perspectives by academics, donors, and policy planners. It attempts a critical analysis of CHC performances in Nepal and the region to understand better their efficacy. Next, the report reviews India and China’s efforts in establishing CHCs. Over the last decade, these two countries have put enormous resources and time into establishing CHCs. Still, based on the current study's findings, there has been minimal reliable reporting or evidence on the success of their efforts. Yet, there is very good reason to believe that with refined backstopping and informed selection, CHCs can be successfully used to provide mechanization access for underserved geographical areas and their communities. The last section proposes a plan of action to improve Nepal's CHCs. There are recommendations, observations and considerations for policy and agricultural development professionals and the existing CHC's management committees (MCs) around establishing and/or the improving CHCs and their management. In summary, this preliminary document establishes a need for additional programming and training that support the many existing CHCs. Further, it highlights the necessity to support multiple comparative research that can quickly investigate the current situation of the hire services sector for agricultural machinery.
Download or read book Impact of Mechanization on Small Fishermen written by Uma K. Srivastava and published by Concept Publishing Company. This book was released on 1986 with total page 536 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Migration Mechanization And Agricultural Labor Markets In Egypt written by Alan Richards and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2019-03-13 with total page 286 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: After a long period of stability, Egypt’s agricultural sector experienced sudden change due to the 1973 oil price increases and Anwar Sadat’s Open Door economic policies. Workers left rural Egypt for the cities and high-wage jobs in the oil-exporting countries. The resulting “labor shortage†and rising real wages in agriculture coincided with a
Download or read book Agricultural Mechanization in Ghana written by Nazaire Houssou and published by Intl Food Policy Res Inst. This book was released on 2013-03-29 with total page 24 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Since 2007, the government of Ghana has been providing subsidized agricultural machines to private enterprises established as Agricultural Mechanization Services Enterprise Centers (AMSEC) to scale up tractor-hire services to smallholder farmers. Although farmers demand for mechanization has increased in recent years, most of this demand concentrates on land preparation (plowing) service. Using the firm investment model and recent data, this paper quantitatively assesses whether AMSEC as a private enterprise is a viable business model attractive to private investors. Even though the intention of the government is to promote private sector-led mechanization, findings suggest that the AMSEC model is unlikely to be a profitable business model attractive to private investors even with the current level of subsidy. The low tractor utilization rate as a result of low operational scale is the most important constraint to the intertemporal profitability of tractor-hire services. Our findings further support the argument of Pingali, Bigot, and Binswanger (1987), who indicated that mechanization service centers supported through governments heavy subsidy are not a policy option anywhere in the world, even in the current situation in Ghana. Although the tractor rental service market is a proper way of mechanizing agriculture in a smallholder-dominated agricultural economy such as Ghana, this paper concludes that the development of such a market depends crucially on a number of factors, including increased tractor use through migration across the two very different rainfall zones (north and south), increased tractor use through multiple tasks, and use of low-cost tractors. The government can play an important role in facilitating the development of a tractor service market; however, the successful development of such a market depends on the incentive and innovation of the private sector, including farmers who want to own tractors as part of their business portfolio, traders who know how to bring in affordable tractors and expand the market, and manufacturers in exporting countries who want to seek a long-term potential market opportunity in Ghana and in other west African countries.
Download or read book Sustainable Agricultural Mechanization A Framework for Africa written by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and published by Food & Agriculture Org.. This book was released on 2019-03-13 with total page 150 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This framework presents ten interrelated principles/elements to guide Sustainable Agricultural Mechanization in Africa (SAMA). Further, it presents the technical issues to be considered under SAMA and the options to be analysed at the country and sub regional levels. The ten key elements required in a framework for SAMA are as follows: The analysis in the framework calls for a specific approach, involving learning from other parts of the world where significant transformation of the agricultural mechanization sector has already occurred within a three-to-four decade time frame, and developing policies and programmes to realize Africa’s aspirations of Zero Hunger by 2025. This approach entails the identification and prioritization of relevant and interrelated elements to help countries develop strategies and practical development plans that create synergies in line with their agricultural transformation plans. Given the unique characteristics of each country and the diverse needs of Africa due to the ecological heterogeneity and the wide range of farm sizes, the framework avoids being prescriptive.
Download or read book Agricultural mechanization and gendered labor activities across sectors Micro evidence from multi country farm household data written by Takeshima, Hiroyuki and published by Intl Food Policy Res Inst. This book was released on 2021-12-07 with total page 37 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Gender differences in the engagement of work activities across sectors are important elements of gender inequality in rural livelihoods and welfare in developing countries. The role of production technologies, including agricultural mechanization, in addressing gender inequality, is increasingly explored. Knowledge gaps remain, however, including, how agricultural mechanization differentially affect labor engagements across sectors. This study aims to partly fill these knowledge gaps through micro-evidence from 8 countries (Ethiopia, Ghana, Nigeria, Tanzania, India, Nepal, Tajikistan and Vietnam), using several nationally representative panel data and supplementary data, and applying Correlated-Random-Effects Double-Hurdle models with Instrumental-Variables. We find that the use of tractors and/or combine harvesters by the household induces greater shift from farm activities to non-farm activities by female members than by male members. While statistical significance varies, these patterns generally hold consistently across all 8 countries studied. These patterns also seem to hold across different farm sizes. While these are short-term relations, agricultural mechanization proxied by tractor and/or combine harvesters is one of the important contributors to gendered rural livelihood. Future studies should more closely investigate underlying mechanisms and implications of these patterns.
Download or read book Medium and large scale farmers and agricultural mechanization in Ghana written by Chapoto, Antony and published by Intl Food Policy Res Inst. This book was released on 2014-06-27 with total page 49 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The survey was aimed at characterizing the transition of smallholder farmers who have become medium- and large-scale commercial farmers in Ghana, assessing agricultural machinery ownership, and patterns of demand for agricultural mechanization among farmers in the country. The data generated from the survey will answer some of the critical questions pertaining to agricultural transformation in the country.
Download or read book Effects of agricultural mechanization on smallholders and their self selection into farming written by Takeshima, Hiroyuki and published by Intl Food Policy Res Inst. This book was released on 2016-12-16 with total page 36 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This research was undertaken to better assess the role of mechanization in the future of smallholder farmers in Nepal. It addresses the knowledge gap about whether promoting mechanization that is often complementary to land can effectively support smallholders, particularly in the face of a growing nonfarm sector. Rising rural wages in Nepal have increasingly put pressures on smallholder farmers, who tend to operate labor-intensive farming. Agricultural mechanization through custom hiring of tractor services has recently been considered as an option to mitigate the impact of rising labor costs for smallholders. However, the benefit of agricultural mechanization may still be better captured by exploiting the economies of scale of medium to large farmers rather than smallholders. In the meantime, the Nepal agricultural sector still employs a disproportionate share of workers given its share in the economy, potentially depressing agricultural labor productivity. It is therefore an important policy question whether to (1) continue supporting smallholders through custom-hired tractor services or (2) encourage smallholders to rent their farms out to medium-size or larger farmers, while helping smallholders specialize in the nonfarm sector, where their labor productivity may be higher. Using samples from the Terai zone—one of the agroecological belts in Nepal, largely consisting of lowland plains— from the Nepal Living Standards Survey, we assess whether the benefits of hiring in tractor services are greater among medium to large farmers than among smallholders, and how these benefits may depend on smallholders’ decision to remain in or leave farming. This study also contributes to the impact evaluation literature by showing that jointly assessing the effects of two treatments (whether to adopt custom-hired tractor services and continue farming, or to search for better options and specialize in off-farm activities) can lead to different implications than assessing them separately. Our analyses suggest that the government should continue to promote custom-hired tractor services not only for medium to large farmers but also for smallholders. If, over time, barriers to specializing in nonfarm activities are lowered and more smallholders start leaving farming, mechanization may no longer benefit the remaining smallholders. Support for mechanization can then be focused more on medium to large farmers, while types of support other than mechanization can be devised for the remaining smallholders.
Download or read book Effects of agricultural mechanization on economies of scope in crop production in Nigeria written by Takeshima, Hiroyuki and published by Intl Food Policy Res Inst. This book was released on 2018-09-06 with total page 30 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Agricultural mechanization has often been characterized by scale-effects and increased specialization. Such characterizations, however, fail to explain how mechanization may grow in Africa where production environments are more heterogeneous and diversification of production may help in mitigating risks from increasingly uncertain climatic conditions. Using panel data from farm households and crop-specific production costs in Nigeria, we estimate how the adoption of animal traction or tractors affects the economies of scope (EOS) between rice, non-rice grains, legume/seed crops, and other crops, which are the crop groups that are most widely grown with animal traction or tractors in Nigeria. The results indicate that the adoption of these mechanization technologies is associated with lower EOS between non-rice grains, legume/seed crops, and other crops, but greater EOS between rice and other crops. An increase in EOS for rice is indicated in both primal and dual analytical approaches. Mechanical technologies may raise EOS between crops that are grown in more heterogeneous environments, even though it may lower EOS between crops that are grown in relatively similar environments. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first paper that shows the effects of mechanical technologies on EOS in agriculture in developing countries.
