Myanmar is facing some challenges, including a shortage of farm labor, while making efforts for modernizing the agricultural sector. There are several ways to resolve farming issues.
Mechanized farming is one method to overcome manual labor shortage, which is a major problem in the country.
The time is ripe to transform the country’s agricultural sector by switching from a traditional system to mechanized farming, as part of efforts to boost the economy.
Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation has expressed its commitment to turning the country’s traditional agriculture into agricultural mechanization in cooperation with related departments concerned.
With agricultural mechanization services rising, the government is encouraging existing 135 groups providing agricultural mechanization services to form a conglomerate and cooperatives. Meanwhile, the ministry has pledged to provide administration, financial management to the cooperatives to ensure they can operate in full swing.
Besides, plans are underway to conduct trainings on agricultural machine operation for those who completed the agro science institute and technical schools and the trainings will guarantee them to operate the machine in the field.
The Agricultural Mechanization Department has opened frontline camps and provides ploughing services at reasonable prices, along with mechanic services for agricultural machinery owned by farmers.
These steps are leading to the agricultural mechanization which is also an important tool in crop production. Farmers who have access to improved tools and technologies have the opportunity to shift from subsistence farming to market-oriented farming.
Theoretically, delivering mechanized solutions and providing training to farming cooperatives on equipment, business systems, and soil management can help us raise the living standards of farmers.
However, modern processing machinery and technologies are beyond our farmers’ means. There are many other obstacles, including lack of storage facilities.
Modernizing the agriculture sector is the fastest way to reduce the incidence of poverty, tackle labor shortage, enhance labor capacity, and increase efficiency.
Mechanized farming can not only help resolve labor shortage by making the workers that remain much more productive, it can also ensure a stable quantity and quality of production. This means a better and more stable income for farmers.
Practising modernized farming with machinery and shifting from traditional to modern agricultural practices with the use of technology, information, and communications technology for production and marketing would ensure that a new generation returns to the farmland.
Good production would mean good income for farmers. We need to create opportunities for them.
