The evolution of agricultural mechanization in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka’s unique geography and its distinct experiences with machine use in rice and field crop production offer valuable insights into different patterns of mechanization. Rice in Sri Lanka has a substantial irrigation infrastructure, a strong plant breeding system, and historical examples of suc...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Abeyratne, Fredrick, Takeshima, Hiroyuki
Format: Book Chapter
Language:Inglés
Published: International Food Policy Research Institute 2020
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/142835
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author Abeyratne, Fredrick
Takeshima, Hiroyuki
author_browse Abeyratne, Fredrick
Takeshima, Hiroyuki
author_facet Abeyratne, Fredrick
Takeshima, Hiroyuki
author_sort Abeyratne, Fredrick
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description Sri Lanka’s unique geography and its distinct experiences with machine use in rice and field crop production offer valuable insights into different patterns of mechanization. Rice in Sri Lanka has a substantial irrigation infrastructure, a strong plant breeding system, and historical examples of success in location-specific breeding strategies (Pain 1986). Furthermore, tractor use in rice cultivation grew very quickly, especially given the relatively small amount of arable land in the country and the lack of direct subsidies, but with certain incentives. Though mechanization initially spread for paddy cultivation, machinery has also become popular in varying degrees in the production of other field crops. This chapter explores the spread of mechanization in Sri Lanka, with a focus on the use of four- and two-wheel tractors, and combine harvesters. It first looks at the process of mechanization from a historical perspective. It then conducts demand- and supply-side analysis to identify the opportunities and challenges facing adoption of machinery in agriculture. It concludes with a brief discussion of the implications of the Sri Lankan experience for African countries starting the process of mechanization.
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spelling CGSpace1428352025-11-06T04:08:15Z The evolution of agricultural mechanization in Sri Lanka Abeyratne, Fredrick Takeshima, Hiroyuki tractors imports supply balance policies equipment technology farmers rice demand labour agriculture agricultural mechanization mechanization governance Sri Lanka’s unique geography and its distinct experiences with machine use in rice and field crop production offer valuable insights into different patterns of mechanization. Rice in Sri Lanka has a substantial irrigation infrastructure, a strong plant breeding system, and historical examples of success in location-specific breeding strategies (Pain 1986). Furthermore, tractor use in rice cultivation grew very quickly, especially given the relatively small amount of arable land in the country and the lack of direct subsidies, but with certain incentives. Though mechanization initially spread for paddy cultivation, machinery has also become popular in varying degrees in the production of other field crops. This chapter explores the spread of mechanization in Sri Lanka, with a focus on the use of four- and two-wheel tractors, and combine harvesters. It first looks at the process of mechanization from a historical perspective. It then conducts demand- and supply-side analysis to identify the opportunities and challenges facing adoption of machinery in agriculture. It concludes with a brief discussion of the implications of the Sri Lankan experience for African countries starting the process of mechanization. 2020-11-01 2024-05-22T12:11:09Z 2024-05-22T12:11:09Z Book Chapter https://hdl.handle.net/10568/142835 en https://doi.org/10.2499/9780896293809 https://doi.org/10.2499/9780896293823 Open Access application/pdf International Food Policy Research Institute Abeyratne, Fredrick and Takeshima, Hiroyuki. 2020. The evolution of agricultural mechanization in Sri Lanka. In An evolving paradigm of agricultural mechanization development: How much can Africa learn from Asia?, eds. Xinshen Diao, Hiroyuki Takeshima, and Xiaobo Zhang. Part Two: Early-Adopter Asian Countries, Chapter, 4 Pp. 139-163. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). https://doi.org/10.2499/9780896293809_04.
spellingShingle tractors
imports
supply balance
policies
equipment
technology
farmers
rice
demand
labour
agriculture
agricultural mechanization
mechanization
governance
Abeyratne, Fredrick
Takeshima, Hiroyuki
The evolution of agricultural mechanization in Sri Lanka
title The evolution of agricultural mechanization in Sri Lanka
title_full The evolution of agricultural mechanization in Sri Lanka
title_fullStr The evolution of agricultural mechanization in Sri Lanka
title_full_unstemmed The evolution of agricultural mechanization in Sri Lanka
title_short The evolution of agricultural mechanization in Sri Lanka
title_sort evolution of agricultural mechanization in sri lanka
topic tractors
imports
supply balance
policies
equipment
technology
farmers
rice
demand
labour
agriculture
agricultural mechanization
mechanization
governance
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/142835
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