Introduction The
country is faced with issues of poverty and food security. This
implies sustaining food production to satisfy the basic needs of
the growing population. A way to achieve this is by increasing
land and labor efficiency in agriculture through agricultural
mechanization.  Agricultural
mechanization aims at sustaining agricultural production by
bringing in more lands under cultivation, saving energy and
resources, protecting the environment, and increasing the overall
economic welfare of farmers.
Machines
and equipment are major inputs to agriculture. The use and
application of these inputs to farm production is one of the
management tools to maximize farm production and profit. During
peak planting and harvesting seasons, labor demand is very high.
By mechanizing selected farm operations like land preparation,
family labor mostly employed in most farms in the country may
engage in other income-generating activities on- and off-farm.
Labor
shortage during peak seasons of land preparation and harvesting
will also be addressed and timeliness of cropping schedule will be
achieved.
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