A mini tractor is revolutionising Kenyan farming by boosting ploughing speeds by 400 per cent, and slashing farming costs like never before.
The Shujaa Tractor developed by JKUAT Industrial Park can plough five acres in a day which would take two oxen and 25 people at least five days while using just five litres of fuel per acre. The mini tractor costs a farmer Sh840 to plough one acre which is less than the Sh1,500 to Sh3,000 cost of hiring ox-ploughs or ordinary tractors.
In less than 100 years, tractors have become the most important mechanical tool used in farming. Farming communities in Africa with access to just one tractor plant their crops up to 40 times quicker, reduce planting costs by a third, and eventually triple their farm’s output. However, for many African farms which are small, measured at 1.3 hectares, it is both uneconomical and impractical to buy or lease standard tractors that are made to plough European and US mega-farms.
Unlike other tractors which can carry out one or two tasks, Peter Nyariki informs that the 12 Horse Power (HP) tractor can be used to perform up to nine other duties. “The tractor takes the farmer through their entire farming process. First, it is used for ploughing the farm then planting crops and harrowing which breaks up larger chunks of the soil, weeding, ridging (lifting soil to create furrows between crop rows), and spraying. It is also used to transport goods that weigh one tonne or less,” he said.
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The tractor is also fitted with a power take-off (PTO) system that can be used to run a water pump or chaff-cutter.
Because it has a small engine, the mini tractor can only be used on flat ground. It can also not be used throughout the day and needs intermittent brakes.
The Shujaa mini tractor costs Sh500,000 with its digging jembe. The extra attachments such as seed drills, planters, and a trailer are bought separately.
James Mutuku, one of the tractor’s first buyers attests that it has been good value for money. “The tractor is easy to operate and I can use it to do everything on the farm from ploughing, and weeding, to carrying manure to my farm. I also earn a side income from it as I use it to transport up to 500 liters of water to my neighbouring farms and plough their farms at a cost,” he said.
Created by a joint project between JKUAT, Society for Research and Initiatives for Sustainable Technologies and Institutions (SRISTI), and USAID INDIA, the tractor ensures that farmers plant their crops on time which increases crop yield by 12–69 per cent. Also, unlike bigger to medium tractors, it easily ploughs navigates the smaller farms most Kenyan farmers have.
The tractors that have been sold to farmers in Machakos, Makueni, Kakamega, Busia, and Siaya can also be leased to farmers at a much cheaper rate than regular tractors
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According to Director at JKUAT Industrial Park Dr. Suleman Oketch, the tractor makes the farmer’s life easier and eliminates the reliance on manual labour and animals in farming.
“A farmer in Makueni who bought a tractor from us taught his wife how to use it and now he is able to focus on his businesses while the wife, without needing hired labour, take care of the farm by herself on the homefront. In times of drought, it is difficult for farmers to get oxen to plough their farms, but with Shujaa, farmers now have a reliable, all-weather partner in their farming,” concluded the professor.