Agricultural mechanization in Ghana: Alternative supply models for tractor hiring services
As in most countries in Africa, agricultural mechanization in Ghana was slow to develop until the 1990s; however, this has changed markedly since the early 2000s. According to the nationally representative Labor Force Survey conducted in 2015/2016, about one third of Ghana’s crop-growing farmers, in...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Book Chapter |
| Language: | Inglés |
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International Food Policy Research Institute
2020
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/142757 |
| _version_ | 1855534161245241344 |
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| author | Diao, Xinshen Takeshima, Hiroyuki |
| author_browse | Diao, Xinshen Takeshima, Hiroyuki |
| author_facet | Diao, Xinshen Takeshima, Hiroyuki |
| author_sort | Diao, Xinshen |
| collection | Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace) |
| description | As in most countries in Africa, agricultural mechanization in Ghana was slow to develop until the 1990s; however, this has changed markedly since the early 2000s. According to the nationally representative Labor Force Survey conducted in 2015/2016, about one third of Ghana’s crop-growing farmers, including smallholders, reported using some form of machinery, mostly tractors for land preparation. Still, policymakers are concerned that mechanization should be proceeding at a faster rate and worry that supply-side issues may be constraining its uptake, especially among smallholders. With this in mind, the government recently started to directly re-engage the promotion of mechanization, devoting public resources to directly subsidize machinery imports and to establish a network of subsidized agricultural mechanization service centers around the country (Diao et al. 2014). Parallel with these government programs is the rapid development of private-sector supply systems, through which an increased number of secondhand tractors were imported and purchased by relatively large-scale farmers. In turn, these farmers provide hiring services to smaller-scale farmers for use mainly in land preparation, harvesting, and threshing. In this chapter, we review recent developments in the uptake of agricultural mechanization in Ghana and the factors driving the growth in farmers’ demand. We then discuss alternative supply models in the country, comparing them with recent government interventions. This leads to our conclusions about appropriate mechanization policies for the future. |
| format | Book Chapter |
| id | CGSpace142757 |
| institution | CGIAR Consortium |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2020 |
| publishDateRange | 2020 |
| publishDateSort | 2020 |
| publisher | International Food Policy Research Institute |
| publisherStr | International Food Policy Research Institute |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | CGSpace1427572025-11-06T04:12:38Z Agricultural mechanization in Ghana: Alternative supply models for tractor hiring services Diao, Xinshen Takeshima, Hiroyuki tractors supply chains policies technology farmers urbanization agriculture agricultural mechanization remuneration rural areas farming systems governance As in most countries in Africa, agricultural mechanization in Ghana was slow to develop until the 1990s; however, this has changed markedly since the early 2000s. According to the nationally representative Labor Force Survey conducted in 2015/2016, about one third of Ghana’s crop-growing farmers, including smallholders, reported using some form of machinery, mostly tractors for land preparation. Still, policymakers are concerned that mechanization should be proceeding at a faster rate and worry that supply-side issues may be constraining its uptake, especially among smallholders. With this in mind, the government recently started to directly re-engage the promotion of mechanization, devoting public resources to directly subsidize machinery imports and to establish a network of subsidized agricultural mechanization service centers around the country (Diao et al. 2014). Parallel with these government programs is the rapid development of private-sector supply systems, through which an increased number of secondhand tractors were imported and purchased by relatively large-scale farmers. In turn, these farmers provide hiring services to smaller-scale farmers for use mainly in land preparation, harvesting, and threshing. In this chapter, we review recent developments in the uptake of agricultural mechanization in Ghana and the factors driving the growth in farmers’ demand. We then discuss alternative supply models in the country, comparing them with recent government interventions. This leads to our conclusions about appropriate mechanization policies for the future. 2020-11-01 2024-05-22T12:11:00Z 2024-05-22T12:11:00Z Book Chapter https://hdl.handle.net/10568/142757 en https://doi.org/10.2499/9780896293809 https://doi.org/10.2499/9780896293823 Open Access application/pdf International Food Policy Research Institute Diao, Xinshen and Takeshima, Hiroyuki. 2020. Agricultural mechanization in Ghana: Alternative supply models for tractor hiring services. In An evolving paradigm of agricultural mechanization development: How much can Africa learn from Asia?, eds. Xinshen Diao, Hiroyuki Takeshima, and Xiaobo Zhang. Part Four: African Countries, Chapter 11, Pp. 377-400. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). https://doi.org/10.2499/9780896293809_11. |
| spellingShingle | tractors supply chains policies technology farmers urbanization agriculture agricultural mechanization remuneration rural areas farming systems governance Diao, Xinshen Takeshima, Hiroyuki Agricultural mechanization in Ghana: Alternative supply models for tractor hiring services |
| title | Agricultural mechanization in Ghana: Alternative supply models for tractor hiring services |
| title_full | Agricultural mechanization in Ghana: Alternative supply models for tractor hiring services |
| title_fullStr | Agricultural mechanization in Ghana: Alternative supply models for tractor hiring services |
| title_full_unstemmed | Agricultural mechanization in Ghana: Alternative supply models for tractor hiring services |
| title_short | Agricultural mechanization in Ghana: Alternative supply models for tractor hiring services |
| title_sort | agricultural mechanization in ghana alternative supply models for tractor hiring services |
| topic | tractors supply chains policies technology farmers urbanization agriculture agricultural mechanization remuneration rural areas farming systems governance |
| url | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/142757 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT diaoxinshen agriculturalmechanizationinghanaalternativesupplymodelsfortractorhiringservices AT takeshimahiroyuki agriculturalmechanizationinghanaalternativesupplymodelsfortractorhiringservices |