Related items
Showing items related by metadata.
-
DocumentInvestment in agricultural mechanization in Africa. Conclusions and recommendations of a Round Table Meeting of Experts 2011
Also available in:
No results found.Many African countries have economies strongly dominated by the agricultural sector and in some this generates a significant proportion of the gross domestic product. It provides employment for the majority of Africa’s people, but investment in the sector remains low. One of the keys to successful development in Asia and Latin America has been mechanization. By contrast, the use of tractors in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) has actually declined over the past fourty years and, compared with other wo rld regions, their use in SSA today remains very limited. It is now clear that unless some positive remedial action is taken, the situation can only worsen. In most African countries there will be more urban dwellers than rural ones in the course of the next two to three decades. It is critical to ensure food security for the entire population but feeding the increasing urban population cannot be assured by an agricultural system that is largely dominated by hand tool technology. In order to r edress the situation, FAO, UNIDO and many African experts are convinced that support is urgently needed for renewed investment in mechanization. Furthermore, mechanization is inextricably linked with agro-industrialization, and there is a need to clarify the priorities in the context of a broader agro-industrial development strategy. This must, however, be done in the right way, taking into account critical factors for success and sustainability. This issue and others were addressed at a thre e-day Round Table Meeting of experts that was convened in Arusha, Tanzania, in June 2009 with the intention of providing guidance on the key strategies and good practices for maximizing the benefits and sustainability of investments in agricultural mechanization in Africa. This report summarizes the deliberations of this Round Table Meeting. -
DocumentConsultative Meeting on Mechanization Strategy: New Models for Sustainable Agricultural Mechanization in sub-Saharan Africa 2017
Also available in:
No results found.Sustainable agricultural mechanization (SAM) is an essential input for the development of the smallholder farm sector in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). The benefits of SAM range from drudgery reduction to improved timeliness of agricultural operations, increased input use efficiency, facilitating sustainable production intensification, ensuring environmental protection, and contributing to make agriculture more ‘climate-smart’. SAM is also important at other levels of the food supply system, for exam ple in post-harvest operations, processing, marketing and transportation. Previously in SSA, mechanization efforts were largely been driven by the public sector. Today there is a need, with appropriate social and natural environmental considerations, to adopt a more holistic view of what mechanization is and learn from the errors made in the past. A cornerstone of SAM is the importance of involving the private sector (especially machinery manufacturers, suppliers and service providers). It needs to be brought to the forefront in SAM development and provision, but without neglecting the important role that the public sector and its institutions can also play. The Consultative Meeting provided a platform to discuss SAM in general, SAM strategies and implementation options, experiences and recommended concrete lines of future action for SSA. Lessons learned from Asia and past experiences in SSA were presented, as well as various models for SAM collaboration and diffusion in SSA. This plat form allowed to better understand appropriate policies that may be required to support and promote the implementation of SAM at regional and national level within SSA. A special focus was placed on three key areas which were the subject of debate and discussion in three working groups. These were: (i) new collaborative models of public-private partnerships; (ii) modalities and approaches for establishing a global SAM knowledge exchange platform and; (iii) the establishment of regional centres or networks for SAM in SSA. The Meeting also received feedback on the on-going FAO-African Union Commission technical cooperation project that is seeking to develop a SAM strategy framework for SSA. -
ProjectDeveloping a Roadmap to Leverage Sustainable Agricultural Mechanization For Climate-Smart Agriculture (SAM4CSA) in Southern Africa - TCP/SFS/3903 2025
Also available in:
No results found.The Framework for Sustainable Agricultural Mechanization in Africa (F-SAMA) was developed in 2018 through a collaboration between the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the Department of Rural Development and Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment (DARBE) at the African Union Commission (AUC). The F-SAMA supports the creation of sustainable manufacture and distribution systems by using agricultural mechanization inputs along the whole production chain, from imports of raw material to other equipment that is suitable to the local conditions and requirements of the smallholder farmers. Several participating countries encountered institutional limitations to accommodate the interests of small-scale farmers (including women and youth) as well as small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs) across different agrifood systems. There was also a need to strengthen mechanisms to facilitate a subregional exchange of information, technologies and networking, as well as subregional cooperation to design and implement collaborative subregional programmes, given that national markets of agricultural machinery and human capacities are too limited to achieve economies of scale, and to build sustainable institutions that will promote the sustainable agricultural mechanization for climate-smart agriculture (SAM4CSA).
Users also downloaded
Showing related downloaded files
No results found.