Africa’s first solar-powered tractor is undergoing field tests in Malawi.
Experts say the hand-operated “Aftrak,” or Africa tractor, could help smallholder farmers improve crop yields. Here’s a refined version: The solar-powered ‘Aftrak’ tractor aims to assist Malawi’s smallholder farmers in breaking through the tough top layer of their soil.
Read the full article here.
“Humanitarian aid should never be a challenge for African societies. If we can coordinate and manage production among 33 million smaller holder farmers, we have enough for ourselves and to feed the world.” Tendai Chitapi, the co-founder of the agritech startup Kuronga, has lived and worked in some of the biggest cities in the world. During a 17-year career in finance, his humble beginnings in Harare took him to Durban, then Shanghai, Dubai, and finally Sandton. No longer inspired by the glamour of a big city life, Chitapi packed it all up to find home on a farm in Vaal River. Read the full article here.
Watch the Arise News clip on the Milken-Motsepe Prize in Green Energy
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH JONATHAN WILSON, AFTRAK PROJECT LEAD, THE WINNERS OF THIS YEAR’S MILKEN-MOTSEPE GREEN ENERGY PRIZE OF $1-MILLION. HE IS ALSO A LECTURER IN SYSTEMS AND MECHANICAL ENGINEERING AT LOUGHBOROUGH UNIVERSITY. AFTRAK IS A GROUNDBREAKING INITIATIVE THAT COMBINES SOLAR MICROGRIDS AND TAILORED TRACTORS TO EMPOWER SMALLHOLDER FARMERS ACROSS AFRICA. IT AIMS TO SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASE CROP YIELDS AND SMALLHOLDER INCOMES WHILE PROVIDING ACCESS TO CLEAN, GREEN ELECTRICITY IN RURAL COMMUNITIES. CONGRATULATIONS ON WINNING THE MILKEN-MOTSEPE GREEN ENERGY PRIZE! CAN YOU SHARE A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF YOUR INNOVATION AND ITS IMPACT ON EXPANDING ACCESS TO SUSTAINABLE ELECTRICITY IN AFRICA? We’re obviously thrilled to bits to win the Milken-Motsepe Prize for Green Energy. Our innovation is around a socio-economic solution to both energy access, but also agriculture and food scarcity. So, we have a system that comprises of three main parts. The first one is a microgrid, and we put loads of work into this microgrid.
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