News
‘Planting for Food and Jobs’ and the challenges of mechanisation
The Planting for Food and Jobs Programme (PFJ) is one of the flagship initiatives of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration and farm mechanisation has a crucial role to play in the success of this initiative.
The Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA) has recently announced that it intends to invest about $500 million in the sector to revamp the country’s farm mechanisation centres.
Over the years, governments had imported various brands of tractors and other farm machinery into the country with the aim of boosting agricultural productivity.
It has been reported quite recently that since 2017, the government has invested over $269 million worth of farm equipment in the agricultural sector with nearly 5,000 pieces of farm equipment having been distributed to farmers.
Over time some of these equipment are able to survive but majority of them break down and fade out due to poor maintenance and servicing. For instance during 2000-2010, over 3,000 tractors of varying makes and brands were imported into Ghana but within a short time most of them failed and became unusable.
One unsung factor that has a positive impact on the longevity of farm machinery is lubrication, which is usually ignored in farm equipment servicing.
The PFJ can benefit immensely from effective mechanisation if owners and managers of farm machinery will consider the lubrication of their equipment as a critical activity in the maintenance and care of their machinery.
Mechanisation reduce drudgery of farm work, increase productivity and improve the quality of farm work generally.
Modern tractors and other farm machinery which drive the mechanisation processes are expected to be efficient, reliable, comfortable and safe notwithstanding the large loads and high operating temperature conditions they face. To achieve these ends, one needs to look at lubrication in respect of the operation of farm machinery.
Lubrication is a prime requirement for all machines, equipment or plants including farm equipment as it adds to the life and efficiency of the machine or equipment by reducing wear and tear of its components.
This in turn will lead to fewer breakdowns, greater machine availability and utility, lower maintenance costs and longer machine life.
Tractor and other farm machines, by their unique design and functions, have many moving parts than conventional automobiles and so their lubrication requirements are extensive and different. Because of that oils designed for automobiles such as cars, trucks, vans are not advisable for use in tractors and other farm machines.
Modern Tractor Lubricants are roughly classified into two types :
Universal Tractor Transmission Oils ( UTTO), and
Super Tractor Universal Oils (STOU)
The UTTO oil is a single multi-functional oil designed to be used for tractor transmission and hydraulic systems as well as wet brakes, clutches and final drives.
The STOU oil can be regarded as the UTTO having in addition an engine lubrication capability. The choice of any of the above-named categories is dictated by the design make of the machine which can in all cases be found in the Users Manual of the machine.
In our country, it is a fact that farm owners have tended to use lubricants originally meant for vehicles and cars for their farm equipment and continue to do so.
This practice causes irreversible damage to tractor engines and transmission components thereby reducing their productive life and creating high maintenance costs and eventual breakdowns of the machines.
This practice is no longer recommendable for modern tractors and other agricultural equipment and use of lubricants specially designed and formulated exclusively for tractors and other farm equipment must be encouraged and used to ensure that mechanisation plays its expected role in the PFJ programme.
The current practice is that equipment dealers and supplier companies import their lubricants to service the machinery they supply and they don’t come for free. They are very expensive and that is probably why machinery users often tend to resort to using “ordinary oils” for their machines and end up destroying the machines to the detriment of their business and the nation.
Fortunately, Ghana has a local lubricant blending plant which is ISO 9001 certified which is capable of producing high quality UTTO and STOU lubricants locally for farm machinery users to curtail the high attrition rate of farm equipment in the country.
This local Blending Plant in collaboration with its franchise private sector partners is capable of producing and supplying high quality lubricants for the the farming industry as a whole at comparatively lower cost and MOFA must explore the opportunities therein and lend its support appropriately.
Training of mechanics at Tractor Service Centres and individual tractor owners in the choice and use of tractor lubricants is worth considering by authorities at MOFA.
By Dr KA Kwakye
Lubrication Consultant
Goldmark Petroleum Services Ltd
(www. goldmarkgh.com)
The Northern Regional Police Command has arrested three men believed to be part of a kidnapping syndicate responsible for abducting a 42-year-old man in Wapuli, a community in the Yendi District.
The suspects, Haruna Seidu, Amidu Bandi and Osman Bandi allegedly kidnapped the victim and demanded GH¢100,000 from his family for his release.
According to a police statement, officers from the Regional Police Intelligence Directorate were deployed to Wapuli after the incident was reported.
The team conducted surveillance and launched a rescue operation.
On Friday, December 5, 2025, police successfully rescued the victim and arrested the suspects after what was described as an intense exchange of gunfire.
The suspects were later taken into custody and are expected to be arraigned before court.
The Police said the a fourth suspect, who is believed to have sustained gunshot wounds during the operation, is currently on the run.
They urged the public to provide any information that may lead to his arrest.
By: Jacob Aggrey
News
Nana Yaa Serwaa Sarpong advocates Bold educational reforms at the UK House of Lords during Global Education Summit.
On November 27 2025, global development leaders, policymakers, education experts and civil society organisations gathered at the UK Parliament’s House of Lords for the Global Education Summit hosted by The Baroness Verma of Leicester and organised by the African British Business Forum.
The high-level event focused on the global rise in out-of-school children and the urgent reforms required to deliver equitable, quality education for all.
Among the distinguished Speakers was Nana Yaa Serwaa Sarpong, Founder & President of Women in Sustainability Africa (WiSA) and General Manager of the EIB Network, who delivered a compelling address on the theme “Breaking Barriers: Empowering Out-of-School Children Through Education.”
In her remarks, Nana Yaa who is currently celebrating 26years of Service in the Media, emphasized that education must be viewed as essential national infrastructure, not charity.
Borrowing experiences from her 18 years of empowering women and young people, she presented a strong case on how Africa’s poor educational systems tie into the poor state of its Gender Equality gap.
According to her, unlocking access to education is one of the most effective ways to strengthen economies, empower women and young girls, build resilient communities and drive sustainable development.
She highlighted that each child excluded from learning represents deferred innovation, delayed opportunity and a weakened society.
Nana Yaa noted that the barriers keeping millions of children out of school are complex and interconnected—ranging from poverty and cultural norms to geographical isolation and digital exclusion.
Addressing these challenges, she argued, requires solutions that are equally comprehensive and multi-layered.
Nana Yaa stressed that girls remain disproportionately affected, and investing in girls’ education has a transformative impact across several Sustainable Development Goals, including gender equality, poverty reduction, health outcomes and climate resilience.
Nana Yaa advocated for the expansion of flexible, inclusive and community-responsive educational models, such as mobile classrooms for remote and nomadic communities, community learning hubs, after-hours programmes for working children, radio-based instruction for low-tech areas and digital platforms designed to reach learners regardless of connectivity challenges.
She warned that without deliberate action, the digital divide would continue to widen, pushing already vulnerable children further to the margins.
During her presentation, she introduced three major reforms WiSA is seeking Partners for, aimed at reshaping educational access across Africa and beyond.
These are the Digital Bridge for Out-of-School Children (DBOC), the Community Education Stewardship Hubs (CESH) involving local women educators and youth volunteers and the Teen-focused Global Skills Accelerator for Out-of-School Teens (GSA-OT).
She also underscored the need for education systems that support instruction, inclusivity and healing, particularly for children experiencing autism, trauma, displacement or conflict.
Nana Yaa emphasised that emotional and psychological support must be integrated into educational frameworks in order to restore confidence, stability and long-term learning capacity.
The summit concluded with strong commitments from stakeholders to adopt sustainable financing models, strengthen data-driven policies and expand cross-sector partnerships.
The African British Business Forum reaffirmed its commitment to championing innovative, scalable solutions to educational inclusion across the UK, Africa and the wider global community.
