Mechanization, digitalization, and rural youth - Stakeholder perceptions on three mega-topics for agricultural transformation in four African countries

Daum, Thomas; Adegbola, Patrice Ygué; Adegbola, Carine; Daudu, C.K.; Issa, Fadlullah Olayiwola; Kamau, Geoffrey; Kergna, Alpha; Mose, Lawrence Obae; Ndirpaya, Yarama; Fatunbi, Oluwole; Zossou, Segla Roch Cedrique; Kirui, Oliver K.; Birner, Regina

doi:10.1016/j.gfs.2022.100616

Cited by 19 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…In contrast, animal traction is often seen as ‘archaic and antiquated’ (Wilson, 2003, p. 21) and has mostly been neglected by governments – except for a short period during the 1980s and early 1990s (Daum and Birner, 2020; Daum et al. , 2022; Mrema et al. , 2008; Pingali et al.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Animal traction, two-wheel tractors, or four-wheel tractors? A best-fit approach to guide farm mechanization in Africa

Daum¹,

Seidel²,

Awoke³

et al. 2023

Ex. Agric.

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Summary Farm mechanization promises to help raise labor productivity and reduce the heavy toil of farming on the world’s millions of smallholder farms, hence contributing to socioeconomic development in the Global South, in particular in Africa. While mechanization is therefore high on the African development agenda, there are heavy – at times dogmatic – debates on which technological pathway toward farm mechanization – animal traction, two-wheel tractors, and four-wheel tractors – should be supported by African governments and development partners. One discussion area relates to the future of animal traction. Proponents see a continued scope for the use of draught animals, whereas opponents see animal traction as old-fashioned and see a potential to leapfrog this mechanization stage. There are also debates on the potential of two-wheel tractors, with proponents arguing that such walk-behind tractors are more affordable and suitable for smallholder farmers, and opponents believing that such tractors lack efficiency and power and still come with a high drudgery. This paper argues that there are no blueprint answers on which technological pathway is ‘best’ but only answers on which one ‘best fits’ the respective conditions. Based on this premise, this paper introduces a ‘best-fit’ framework that allows for assessing the comparative advantages and disadvantages of the three technological pathways in different agroecological and socioeconomic conditions. The results suggest that all three forms of mechanization are associated with areas where they ‘best fit’. All three farm mechanization pathways hinge on public policies and investments to create an enabling environment for private markets, as, ultimately, innovation processes should be market driven. The ‘best-fit’ framework enables governments and development partners to focus efforts to support farm mechanization on solutions that ‘best fit’ their country’s farming systems and not on those that are politically most attractive, thereby contributing to sustainable agricultural mechanization and development.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Animal traction, two-wheel tractors, or four-wheel tractors? A best-fit approach to guide farm mechanization in Africa

Daum¹,

Seidel²,

Awoke³

et al. 2023

Ex. Agric.

Self Cite

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“…Efficient communications about career opportunities in digital agriculture (e.g., through online agricultural, environmental and science communications, and public engagement campaigns) and its potential to result in career inspiration is a topic of interest in recent conceptual studies. In the social science literature, researchers have investigated the question of to what degree technologization would make the farming profession attractive (Daum et al 2022 ). However, this topic has not been studied frequently enough to report on with empirical findings from a career communications angle.…”

Section: The Qualitative Syntheses Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

How digital communications contribute to shaping the career paths of youth: a review study focused on farming as a career option

Unay‐Gailhard

Brennen

2022

Agric Hum Values

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Can the power of digital communications create opportunities for overcoming generational renewal problems on farms? This interdisciplinary review explores the reported impacts of digital communication on career initiation into farming from a global perspective via the lens of career theories. Seventy-three papers were synthesized into two domains: (1) the impact of digital communication interactions on farming career initiation, and (2) the dynamics of digital communication initiatives that create opportunities to inspire youth into farming. The finding shows that the mainstream literature primarily aims to support the continuity of farming careers but pay little attention to the potential of digital communication to attract youth into farming. This review argues that career communications for farming receives insufficient attention, and could be better integrated into agricultural communications strategies by using the potential of digital communications. Study concludes that while economic and geographic factors, as well as societal and cultural norms, lead to negative perceptions on farming careers, there are three pathways that may contribute to breaking down these negative perceptions. Firstly, taking the changing nature of career motivations, such as the trend towards sustainable farming linked to self-fulfillment, among today’s youth into consideration is essential. Secondly, highlighting technological advances in digital agriculture practices, like geographical flexibility or innovation capacity of farming, for example, is important to increase awareness about new opportunities in the profession. Lastly, communication campaigns with targeted groups (e.g., young females) play a role to change the negative perceptions of the rural way of life and the farming profession.

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“…First, digital agriculture is the application of digital technologies along the agricultural value chain. Digital tools can be embodied in agricultural machinery (e.g., precision farming technologies using sensors, data analytics, and variable rate technologies) or intangible, e.g., extension applications, farm management software, and digital platforms that connect farmers to the value chain (Daum et al, 2022).…”

Section: A Digital Technology As An Entrance To Digital Transformationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Digital Transformation in The Agriculture Sector: Exploring The Shifting Role of Extension Workers

2022

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Dunia akan terus berkembang secara digital. Meningkatnya penggunaan teknologi digital secara eksponensial telah mendorong disrupsi, termasuk di sektor pertanian. Kehadiran teknologi digital telah mengubah cara orang berkomunikasi, belajar, dan berinteraksi. Kondisi ini juga menjadi tantangan baru bagi penyuluh pertanian bagaimana menyikapi perubahan masyarakat. Tulisan ini bertujuan (1) untuk menganalisis wawasan tentang bagaimana teknologi digital mentransformasi sektor pertanian Indonesia dan (2) untuk mengeksplorasi pergeseran peran penyuluh pertanian di era digital. Metode pendekatan yang digunakan adalah kualitatif. Kami menggunakan data kualitatif (pengamatan online) yang dikumpulkan di World Wide Web dengan observasi yang tidak mengganggu dan data dari tinjauan pustaka. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan teknologi digital mengubah sektor pertanian dalam dua hal, sistem pangan, dan sistem pengetahuan dan inovasi pertanian. Tulisan ini mencoba menunjukkan bahwa digitalisasi telah mengubah peran penyuluh pertanian. Peran Penyuluh diperbaharui untuk menyesuaikan diri dengan ekosistem digital, seperti informan, konsultan, penasehat, fasilitator, mediator, dan promotor. Serta perluasan peran penyuluh di bidang baru yaitu penyuluh sebagai content creator dan influencer, gatekeeper, translator, sense makers, expert user, big data analyst, artificial intelligence dan digital twin data scientist, pengambil keputusan , pengembang perangkat lunak, dan pembuat gamify. Sementara itu, untuk menjawab dua tantangan besar tersebut,

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Mechanization, digitalization, and rural youth - Stakeholder perceptions on three mega-topics for agricultural transformation in four African countries

Cited by 19 publications

References 41 publications

Animal traction, two-wheel tractors, or four-wheel tractors? A best-fit approach to guide farm mechanization in Africa

Animal traction, two-wheel tractors, or four-wheel tractors? A best-fit approach to guide farm mechanization in Africa

How digital communications contribute to shaping the career paths of youth: a review study focused on farming as a career option

Digital Transformation in The Agriculture Sector: Exploring The Shifting Role of Extension Workers

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