Japanese manufacturer aims to double tractor export to Africa out of India

Photo source: Kubota

Japanese tractor manufacturer Kubota is planning to ramp up production of basic, low-cost tractors in India as it targets growing demand across African markets. The company is currently selecting a site for a new manufacturing facility in India, with the aim of doubling its output and using the country as an export base. Speaking at the recent Japan-India-Africa Business Forum, company president Yuichi Kitao, said Africa could follow a similar agricultural trajectory to India.

Kubota, which established a subsidiary in 2017 in Kenya, had struggled to gain a market share in Africa. But fortunes changed in 2022, when it acquired Indian tractor maker Escorts, whose Farmtrac and Powertrac brands are widely sold in Nigeria, Angola, Burkina Faso, Egypt, and Tanzania. Escorts, now renamed Escorts Kubota, has now become a key part of the Japanese firm’s strategy to meet increasing African demand for affordable tractors. The cost of producing such tractors in India is roughly 30% less than in Japan, The Japanese tractor maker now plans to use Escorts Kubota’s low-cost manufacturing and established distribution channels to expand sales across the continent.

Africa’s annual demand for tractors is estimated at around 24,500 units. Kubota anticipates this figure will rise to around 30,000 by the end of the decade. The company is aiming to ship 4,000 tractors a year to African markets within five years – a fivefold increase from current levels – with its Indian operations expected to take on a greater share of production.

Small-scale farmers cultivating modest plots of land account for the bulk of food production in Africa. While interest in mechanisation is growing, most farming in sub-Saharan Africa still relies on manual labour and animal-drawn equipment. Tractors remain out of reach for many, as costs are prohibitive.

Past government-led mechanisation efforts – including subsidised equipment schemes and public hire centres – have often failed due to poor rural infrastructure, limited investment in skills development, weak maintenance capacity, lack of access to fuel and spare parts, and governance issues such as rent-seeking and corruption.

Commercially viable tractor hire services are seen as a key route to increasing mechanisation. In recent years, some ‘Uber-like’ on-demand models have emerged. For instance, Nairobi-based Hello Tractor, which has received investment from US manufacturer John Deere, connects smallholder farmers with tractor owners via a mobile app. 

 

References 

‘Agricultural mechanization in Africa: Myths, realities and an emerging research agenda’, Global Food Security, September 2020

‘John Deere invests in Hello Tractor’, Deere & Company, 02 August 2022

‘Kubota aims to break into Africa with made-in-India tractors’, Nikkei Asia, 26 November 2022

'The State of Food and Agriculture 2022', Food and Agriculture Organisation, November 2022

'Kubota to expand business in Africa, Southeast Asia from India', Nikkei Asia, 05 March 2025

‘Kubota Group Integrated Report 2024’, Kubota Group, Accessed 24 March 2025