Contractor Development in Africa

Purpose of the program

Develop and up-skill Farmers in Africa that to run agricultural contracting services businesses sustainably and profitably

Setting up and running an Agricultural Contracting Service business requires business skills, marketing skills and technical knowledge of the implements and their running costs and maintenance requirements.

Learning modules

Module 1: Setting up and running an agri-contracting service business

Setting up a business
Business models for agri-contracting services
Sensitise on legal requirements relevant to specific country
Setting up contracts/ service level agreements
Scheduling for optimal productivity and adherence to maintenance requirements
Meeting John Deere quality requirements and standards
After sales service- monitoring yield, re-contracting
Roles and responsibilities of relevant role players

Module 2: Manage your finance

Mastering the terms efficiency and effectiveness
Basic record keeping and book keeping principles and processes
Putting a quote together
Issuing invoices
Debt collection principles and practices
Cash flow management

Module 3: Marketing and customer care

Determine market potential in an area
Develop profiles of all potential clients
Do’s and don’ts in marketing your services
Principles of customer service
Indicators of success that will also ensure return-work

Module 4: Basic Agronomy (50% practice)

Understand soil composition and structure
Soil preparation practices
1. Soil preparation options
2. Conservation and non-conservation methods (if applicable)
3. Crop specific soil preparation
Planting practices
1. Planter calibration
2. Crop specific planting practice
Spraying
1. Accurate application rate
2. Optimal product droplet size
3. Consistent crop coverage
4. Reducing overlaps and skips
5. Timeliness
6. Drift control

Module 5: Mechanization

Implement economy- optimal use of implements according to the task at hand
Implement specifications – find the right implements for the job (based on market demand for service)
How to determine the running cost of implements
How to determine price of services (based on the above) in order to be market related AND profitable
Basic principles of how to care for your implements in a contracting business
Basic safety
Basic daily maintenance