Farmers Review Africa Sept/Oct 2018 FRA - September - October 2018 digital 5 | Page 51

FEATURE
Boosting Farm Productivity
in Africa through the
sustainable use of machines
T
he Food and Agricultural
Organization (FAO) and the
African Union has launched a
new framework document that aims
to increase agricultural efficiency and
reduce drudgery by helping countries
in Africa to develop strategies for
sustainable farm mechanization.
The Sustainable Agricultural
Mechanization: A Framework
for Africa (SAMA) is the result of
discussions with policy makers
from AU member states, the AU
Commission, FAO and key partners.
It offers a detailed look at the history
of machinery in Africa, and points the
way towards addressing challenges
and creating new opportunities to
assure the successful adoption of
mechanization.
“Doubling agricultural productivity
and eliminating hunger and
malnutrition in Africa by 2025 will
be no more than a mirage unless
mechanization is accorded utmost
importance,” AU Commissioner for
Rural Economy and Agriculture,
Josefa Sacko, said at the launch of the
framework at FAO.
Remarkably, more than three-fourths of
farmers in sub-Saharan Africa prepare
their lands using only hand tools, a
practice that entails poor productivity,
repels youth and is incompatible with
the continent’s Zero Hunger goal.
“Farmers in Africa should be able to
use modern agricultural technology,
both digital and mechanical, to boost
the agricultural sector in a sustainable
way,” said FAO Deputy Director-
General Maria Helena Semedo.
The new framework identifies 10
priorities for AU member states to
include in their national plans, ranging
from the need for a stable supply of
machine spare parts and innovative
financing mechanisms, and the
importance of regional collaborations
that allow for cross-border hiring
services.
Moreover, the framework notes that
successful national mechanization
strategies will address key
sustainability issues including gender,
youth, environmental protection and
the overarching principle that farming
must be profitable. It also emphasizes
that these strategies should cover the
entire agrifood value chain, including
harvesting, handling, processing and
food safety aspects, with an eye to
reducing food losses, boosting rural
employment and bolstering the links
between farmers and consumers.
Past, present and future
While tractors are used to prepare
land on over 60% of cultivated lands
in Asia, the corresponding figure
for Sub-Saharan Africa is around
5%. Moreover, the use of draught
animals in sub-Saharan Africa is
minimal outside of Ethiopia - due in
considerable measure to the tsetse fly -
so almost all the work is done manually.
One result is that many African farmers
deploy low-yielding techniques and
may prefer slash-and-burn methods.
Today smaller and more affordable
machinery, such as two-wheel tractors,
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