300 Young Farmers Complete Machinery Training Programme in Volta Region

More than 300 young farmers from communities across Ghana’s southern and middle belts have completed an intensive two-day training programme in the operation and maintenance of modern farm machinery, a step that organisers hope will begin to close the country’s persistent gap in skilled agricultural equipment operators.

The programme, held at the Weta Irrigation Scheme frontage in Avalavi under the theme “Driving Growth: Mastering Farm Machinery for the Future,” was organised by BonAgro LOVOL in partnership with Weichai LOVOL Global and PanAfrica Savings and Loans. Participants received hands-on instruction on LOVOL tractors, combine harvesters, and track tillers, covering safe operation, routine maintenance, and basic troubleshooting.

The training addresses what industry figures describe as a structural bottleneck in Ghana’s agricultural mechanisation efforts. According to Richmond Kwadwo Tufour, Machine Sales Executive for the Southern Zone at BonAgro, more than 90 per cent of farm machinery operators in the country previously had no formal certification. “The initiative was designed to tackle two key challenges confronting Ghana’s agricultural sector — limited access to skilled machinery operators and the high cost of mechanisation services,” he said.

Mr Tufour noted that while many young people express interest in mechanised farming, they frequently lack both the technical know-how and the financial capacity to pursue it. The programme sought to address the skills gap directly, while also providing a pathway to legal certification. Officials from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority were present on-site to issue Licence E credentials, which authorise holders to operate agricultural machinery nationwide. The on-the-spot arrangement significantly reduced the cost and bureaucratic hurdles typically associated with licence acquisition.

All participants received certificates of completion alongside their DVLA licences, a combination that organisers say will allow them to operate legally and professionally across the country.

Traditional leaders in the area have welcomed the investment in human capital. Torgbi Adjei III, Divisional Chief of Atiteti in the Weta Traditional Council, urged beneficiaries to pass on the knowledge they acquired to other farmers in their communities, arguing that broader adoption of modern techniques is essential to promoting climate-smart and mechanised agriculture in the Volta Region.

The call for wider access was echoed by Reuben Asare, CEO of As-Passion and the 2025 National Best Youth Farmer, who appealed to the Minister of Food and Agriculture to expand access to modern farm equipment for young and smallholder farmers. Without affordable machinery, Mr Asare suggested, the country risks leaving a generation of willing farmers locked out of productivity gains that mechanisation can deliver.

The programme arrives at a time when Ghana’s agricultural sector is under pressure to modernise. Labour-intensive farming methods remain dominant in much of the country, and the cost of mechanisation services continues to rise. Training initiatives of this kind, paired with streamlined licensing, offer a practical model for scaling up the pool of qualified operators — though the challenge of equipment affordability for smallholders remains unresolved.

Image Source: GHANAIAN TIMES