Sustainable agricultural mechanization and commercialization for widespread adoption of conservation agriculture systems in Africa.

To confront the situations of climate crisis, natural resource degradation and rising populations, farmers need access to modern sustainable agricultural technologies, especially Conservation Agriculture (CA) and sustainable agricultural mechanization (SAM). Without such access, the UN's SDGs will not be met in their entirety. The implications of mechanizing CA are discussed for both smallholder and larger-scale farmers. Constraints, issues and options are reviewed and the need for commercial, private sector, CA mechanization service provision for smallholders is identified. The Framework for Sustainable Agricultural Mechanization for Africa (SAMA) is a key pillar for achieving Aspiration 1 (a prosperous Africa based on inclusive growth and sustainable development) of the African Union's (AU) Agenda 2063; and SDG 2 (ending hunger and achieving food security). The move towards commercialization of smallholder agriculture in Africa is seen as an inevitable reality in the medium term. It is also a necessary prerequisite for the adoption of SAM, which is being actively promoted in Africa, both at the level of the AU and by national governments, research centres, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and private-sector agricultural machinery companies. The policy dimensions of promoting SAM are discussed from the public and private-sector perspectives. A forward look identifies novel business models for sustainable mechanization services, an increasing application of information technology (IT) and the (longer term) potential for drones and robotics. The conclusion is that CA and SAM are essential ways forward to answer Africa's needs for sustainable food production while engaging young entrepreneurs in the provision of mechanization services using IT, digital tools and precision equipment.

Does Agricultural Mechanization Improve the Green Total Factor Productivity of China’s Planting Industry?

Agricultural mechanization is an important factor to improve the green total factor productivity of planting industry, which is the key way to realize the sustainable development and high-quality development of agriculture. Based on the panel data of 30 provinces in China from 2001 to 2019, this paper uses the stochastic frontier analysis method of output oriented distance function to measure the green total factor productivity of China’s planting industry based on net carbon sink, and empirically studies the impact of agricultural mechanization on the green total factor productivity in China’s planting industry. The empirical analysis finds that mechanization can significantly promote the planting green total factor productivity, and this basic conclusion is still robust after using instrumental variables, sub sample regression. Further research found that the path of mechanization on planting green total factor productivity is mainly reflected in technology progress and spatial spillover. The mechanism of operation scale expansion, factor allocation optimization and technical efficiency change is not significant. Given these findings, the paper adds considerable value to the empirical literature and also provides various policy- and practical implications.

Kajian Penerapan Mekanisasi Pertanian Berbasis Usaha Pelayanan Jasa Alat dan Mesin Pertanian (UPJA) untuk Sistem Produksi Padi di Kabupaten Banyumas, Purbalingga dan Banjarnegara

<p><em>The use of agricultural equipment and machinery is one way to increase the productivity and efficiency of farming. In order to accelerate the adoption of agricultural equipment and machinery as part of the application of agricultural mechanization, one of which is through the agricultural equipment and machinery service business/usaha pelayanan jasa alat dan mesin pertanian (UPJA). This study aims to analyze the application of agricultural mechanization, especially related to the use of equipment and machinery by UPJA for the rice production system in Banyumas, Purbalingga and Banjarnegara Regencies. Data were obtained, including the ownership of the equipment and machinery, the extent of coverage carried out by the UPJA, the cost of renting the equipment and machinery determined by each UPJA, and the costs incurred for the operation of the equipment and machinery in each UPJA. The results of the calculation of the working capacity of the hand tractor obtained an average of 0.07 ha hour^-1. The lack of ability of equipment and machinery operators as well as the topography of the area and soil conditions are factors that affect the working capacity of the hand tractor in this study. UPJA which has a coverage area of more than the Break Event Point (BEP) value means that the UPJA has met the minimum area that must be processed to break even. The results of the calculation of the B/C ratio are that 9 UPJAs are feasible because the B/C ratio &gt; 1 and 10 UPJAs are not feasible because of the B/C ratio &lt; 1. UPJA whose business is not feasible is expected to improve the managerial and performance of UPJA.</em></p>

Research on the Progress and Future Development of Technological Innovation of Intelligent Agricultural Machinery in China

Agricultural machinery is the key fi eld in modern scientifi c and technological innovation. In recent years, China has made great achievements in the development of high-performance intelligent agricultural machinery with cutting-edge technology, which promotes the effi cient use of agricultural resources and environment-friendly development, and supports 70 percent of China’s agricultural mechanization production. This paper mainly focus on the innovation and progress in the fi eld of intelligent agricultural equipment technology in China from the aspects of information perception and precision production monitoring technology, intelligent operation management technologies, power machinery, farmland operation machinery, intelligent harvesting technology, production technology and agricultural products processing equipment. the paper also summarizes that, in the future, green, intelligence and universality will become the main characteristics of the development of intelligent agricultural machinery technology, and cross integration, extension and expansion will become the main direction of technological innovation. At last by referring to the application basis and cutting-edge technology of China’s intelligent agricultural machinery industry, the innovation and development goals and research direction of future intelligent agricultural equipment, the scientifi c and technological innovation and industrial development trend in the fi eld of agricultural mechanization and intelligent application integration, this paper puts forward some suggestions on the research direction of future intelligent agricultural equipment.

Big Data Analysis of e-Commerce Efficiency and Its Influencing Factors of Agricultural Products in China

At present, the e-commerce industry of agricultural products plays a pivotal role in promoting income growth and helping rural revitalization. This paper collected relevant data in the recent 8 years (2012 to 2019) and used the DEA model and Tobit model to analyze the correlation degree between the efficiency and various influencing factors in China. DEA analysis results show that, in recent years, three efficiencies are quite different: the comprehensive efficiency and scale efficiency show an upward trend, while the pure technical efficiency remains at a high level. Tobit model results show that the number of urban Internet users, rural Internet users, logistics practitioners, the development of national economy are negatively correlated with e-commerce efficiency; the length of traffic construction has no significant correlation; the level of agricultural mechanization has a significant positive correlation. Hence, the paper puts forward four suggestions.

Does Agricultural Mechanization Improve Agriculture Environment Efficiency?-Evidence from China’s Planting Industry

It has important theoretical value and practical significance to study the impact of agricultural mechanization (AM) on agriculture environment efficiency (AEE), as AM is an important way to improve the level of rural modernization and accelerate the high-quality development of agriculture, while the increase of energy consumption of AM has brought greenhouse gas emissions. Using the panel data of 30 provinces in China from 2001 to 2019, this article adopts stochastic frontier analysis method with output oriented distance function to measure AEE based on net carbon sink, and empirically analyzes the impact of AM on AEE. The empirical analysis finds that the AEE of the whole country and all provinces shows an upward trend with time, and has significant spatial positive autocorrelation characteristics. There is a Kuznets inverted "U" relationship between AM and AEE. Meanwhile, AM has spatial spillover effect and time cumulative effect on AEE, and this basic conclusion is still robust after using instrumental variables, spatial autoregressive model, sub sample regression, changing spatial weight matrix and independent. Further research shows that the effect of AM on AEE depends on the input effect and output effect caused by AM, and the mechanism is mainly reflected in agricultural technology progress, expansion of the scale of agricultural operation, optimization of resource allocation and spatial spillover. Given these findings, the paper adds considerable value to the empirical literature and also provides various policy- and practical implications.

Active-passive and passive-passive configurations of combined tillage implements for improved tillage and tractive performance: A review

Proper selection of energy-efficient agricultural machinery helps to reduce drudgery, increase cropping intensity and reduce time required for field preparation. With conventional tillage implements, multiple passes are required to obtain desired seedbed which increase soil compaction due to repeated movement of tractor in field. With combined tillage implements two or more tillage implements are combined to reduce time and fuel energy required for seedbed preparation. In this paper, various researches on active-passive and passive-passive configurations of combined tillage implements have been discussed along with their working principles. It was found that these were associated with less draft, specific energy, and tire slippage compared to conventional implements which provides a sound basis for using them with suitable engine power to improve the power utilization of tractors. Hence, use of these implements could help to reduce soil compaction, labour, fuel cost as well as save time in preparing seedbed. More analytical studies and classical approaches are needed to predict energy requirements of these implements from the knowledge of individual energy requirements of conventional implements to help in proper matching of tractor-implement and also to develop decision support systems. Considering their promising outcomes, they will emerge as effective tools to improve agricultural mechanization.

The Influence Paths of Agricultural Mechanization on Green Agricultural Development

For sustainable agricultural development, increasing efforts are put on promoting agricultural mechanization and green agricultural development all over the world. Based on the panel data of Chinese provincial agriculture from 2002 to 2018, the System Generalized Method of Moments model and mediation model are constructed to explore the paths of agricultural mechanization affecting green agricultural development. The results show that agricultural mechanization can not only promote the green agricultural development directly but also indirectly by transferring the agricultural labor force and increasing fertilizer input. However, because of the surge of pesticide demand, agricultural mechanization also leads to serious pollution indirectly. With the development of large-scale agricultural machinery, the direct promotion of agricultural machinery on green agricultural development will be more significant. However, it will be less efficient to substitute more agricultural labor force with machinery power. The problem of pesticide abuse will also become more serious. Therefore, it is important for green agricultural development to encourage human capital investment in agricultural mechanization. In addition, more attention should be paid to improving the input efficiency of fertilizers and pesticides so that agriculture will be sustainable in production and the ecological environment.

Farmers’ Perception and Access to Mechanization in Maize Production in Kamwenge District, Western Uganda

Farm mechanization has been an important aspect in bringing out a significant improvement in agricultural productivity. In Uganda, mechanization acts as a backbone of the present agricultural systems across the country. Despite its recognized role towards agriculture, farmers still perceive its use and need differently mainly in terms of hire costs, traditional culture, size and topography of land, availability and social status. The study was examining farmers’ perceptions towards mechanization in maize production in Kanara sub-county in Kamwenge district. The objectives were to: determine farmers’ perceptions on the usefulness of mechanization on maize production, determine the relationship between socio-economic characteristics and farmers’ perception of mechanization, identify the factors limiting the use of agricultural mechanization among maize farmers, and to establish how best agricultural mechanization could be promoted for sustainable production. The study employed a cross-sectional survey design engaging both qualitative and quantitative approaches for data collection and analysis. Information was gathered from 362 respondents using questionnaire and interviews. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 20 to generate both descriptive and inferential statistics. Farmers’ perceived mechanization to perform more work than humans, reliable, time saving, and accessible and high work accomplishment rate. Farmer perceptions were influenced by socio-economic characteristics for example; age, land size, gender, income level/status, employment status, type of land owned and availability of labor. The study identified the challenges associated with the use of agricultural mechanization such as; less access to mechanization information significant at 5%, land ownership type at 0.03 (5%), household size 0.03 (5%), access to credit 0.04 (5%), years in maize farming at 0.05 (5%), availability and access to implements at 0.09, high costs of hire at 0.02 (1%), slope of the land at 0.07, and fuel costs at 0.00 (1%). These would be solved by extending credit services to the farmers, community capacity building, awareness creation, group formation, promoting mechanization as part of production, establishing contract farming schemes, increasing investment in agricultural mechanization, training and education and forming public–private partnerships. The study concluded that farmers had varying perceptions about agricultural mechanization which depended mainly on socio-economic factors. It recommended the need to promote rural-urban migration as this could create more land and encourage farmers to adopt mechanization since it may create more land reserve.