On 1/21/05, "Scott Kleinberg" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> If there are no sources of used machinery, perhaps he could lease
> something -- using the funds he has to pay the lease for a specified
> time -- with an option to buy later at a specified price. Often you may
> be able to apply some of the leasing funds to the purchase price. It may
> not be what he wants, but it may be what's available.
What is probably more urgent is to determine the size of his property.
That way he can find a suitable resource, to work the land effectively.
Without going for an overkill on Capital Outlay. If he gets a tractor
there are lots of associated running costs that probably come into play,
as well, does he have a plough or is he going to rent one?
Can he use the tractor to plough for other farmers?
Also there seem to be several low cost alternatives for traction, the
Far East, for instance China, has many small scale farmer implements.
Is he going to use the tractor to also pump water?
If he is close to a village, he can also see what markets exist for
utilizing the tractor, e.g. if a wagon is available he can take people
to the local market once a week, or move produce.
Alternatively the Village might need a tractor for Local Refuse removal,
..I know that in South Africa there was a neat Company that used Local
Government Contracts to finance several small contractors, due to the
three year contract as a surety...
Also is there any advise given to him about alternative crops ("crop
diversification") that might have higher yields... BTW, I assumed that
they have a system likely close to what they use in SA, called a
Stokvel, where a group pools a certain amount every month, then one
individual gets the "kitty" or purse for the whole month, or they have a
big event once a year. It can also be used as a Funeral expense pay-out
system, which currently due to AIDS is severely straining this savings
system.
All the Best,
d
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