•Firm expands access, deepens policy, youth engagement
James Emejo in Abuja
Managing Director of TracTrac Mechanization Services Limited, Mr. Godson Ohuruogu, yesterday declared that lack of skilled tractor operators and mechanics remained some of the biggest obstacles to the country’s agricultural mechanisation drive.
He warned that importing thousands of tractors without the manpower to operate and maintain them would do little to transform food production.
Ohuruogu who spoke at a media engagement in Abuja, said the country’s mechanisation challenge extended beyond access to equipment, adding that inadequate human capacity continued to undermine investments in the sector.
He also dismissed suggestions that government policy remained the biggest barrier to mechanisation, insisting that attracting private investment posed a real challenge in the sector
According to him, Nigeria currently lacks sufficient qualified tractor operators and mechanics to sustain a modern mechanisation ecosystem, a development that had discouraged investment and limited the impact of previous tractor intervention programmes.
However, he disclosed that the company plans to train about 3,000 tractor operators beginning next year to bridge the widening skills gap.
He said, “You can buy 50,000 tractors, but if there are no operators, the tractors will simply remain idle.”
TracTrac boss explained that many government tractor intervention programmes have struggled because tractors were deployed to farming communities where there were no trained operators to use them.
Beyond the shortage of operators, Ohuruogu identified the lack of skilled mechanics as another critical weakness, warning that inexperienced operators often damage new tractors through poor handling and inadequate maintenance.
He noted that routine checks such as monitoring engine oil levels and timely servicing are frequently ignored, resulting in equipment failures within a short period.
He also identified the shortage of spare parts as a major constraint, saying many imported tractors arrive without adequate after-sales support, forcing farmers to wait several months whenever components fail.
To address the problem, he advocated stronger investment in local tractor manufacturing and assembly, arguing that domestic production would improve access to spare parts, reduce maintenance delays and strengthen the mechanisation value chain.
Ohuruogu revealed that TracTrac is partnering a Nigerian-owned manufacturer, Bespoke, based in Ilorin, to deploy 565 locally assembled tractors to smallholder farmers and Mechanisation Service Providers (MSPs) under a pilot programme.
He said the initiative is being closely monitored and could be expanded significantly if the machines continue to perform satisfactorily.
The TracTrac chief executive also dismissed suggestions that government policy remained the biggest barrier to mechanisation, insisting that the real challenge is attracting private investment into the sector.
According to him, government alone cannot provide the estimated 250,000 tractors required to adequately mechanise Nigerian agriculture.
He pointed out that while government interventions remained important, the private sector must provide about 98 per cent of the investment needed to close the country’s mechanisation deficit.
Ohuruogu urged investors to take advantage of opportunities in the sector, noting that a tractor purchased for less than N20 million could generate between N8 million and N10 million annually over several years if properly deployed.
He further identified fragmented farmlands, high acquisition costs, low awareness of mechanisation services and poor accessibility as additional constraints limiting the sector’s growth.
According to him, the company is tackling these challenges through technology, demand aggregation, partnerships with financial institutions, local equipment manufacturers and government agencies, while also supporting the implementation of Nigeria’s National Agricultural Mechanisation Policy.
The company also unveiled its Young People in Mechanization (YPiM) initiative, aimed at attracting young Nigerians into tractor operations, equipment maintenance, mechanisation entrepreneurship and policy advocacy as part of efforts to build a sustainable workforce for the sector.
Ohuruogu said it had supported more than 500,000 farmers, worked with over 6,000 MSPs and facilitated the deployment of hundreds of tractors across the country through its technology-driven mechanisation platform.
Through technology, strategic financing, and on-the-ground partnerships, TracTrac connects farmers, tractor owners, and MSPs to improve access to mechanisation services.
Key to this model is TracTrac Plus, the company’s flagship digital platform, which connects farmers directly with MSPs in real time while supporting asset tracking, farm mapping, and demand aggregation.
Since launch, the platform has recorded over 5,000 app installs and facilitated over 2,000 mechanisation service engagements.
The impact is driven by the company’s four core pillars including accessibility, availability, affordability, and capacity, ensuring mechanisation services reach farmers when, where, and how they need them.
Ohuruogu said, “At TracTrac, we believe tractors should be within reach of every farmer, not a privilege for a few.
Through technology, policy engagement, financial inclusion, and strong partnerships, we’re building an ecosystem that not only delivers services but creates lasting capacity for Nigeria’s agricultural sector.”