Learnings from India and Bangladesh about Enabling Mechanisation

Nepal has the potential to expand and intensify its constrained agricultural productivity through agricultural mechanization for small holder farmers among different regions within the country. Current and future climate uncertainties along with diverse topography and labor shortages highlight the need for scale-appropriate mechanization to ensure food security and profitability. However, limitations in research and development systems, credit access and local manufacturing hinder access to and uptake of agricultural machinery. This review provides a timely reflection on the pathways in which mechanization has occurred in the neighboring countries of India and Bangladesh to inform the development of Nepal’s future mechanization policies. We have formalised this in a manuscript that is currently under review. To request a pre-print, please contact the lead author, Emma Karki (e.karki@cgiar.org)

Highlights of the manuscript:

Low levels of mechanization and low agricultural productivity among small landholders in Nepal.
Limitations in policy support, credit facilities, and research and development along with low manufacturing capacity hinder mechanization.
Potential pathways include policy support to fostering public-private partnership by establishing custom hiring centers, expansion of rural credit access.
Promotion of scale-appropriate technology is required via investing in building the technical capacity of the workforce by establishing localized research systems to test technology.

… for more productive, profitable and resilient farming systems

The SRFSI project is a regional research for development collaboration of more than 30 partners, focused on the Eastern Gangetic Plains.