Conservation tillage, planting and cultivation with oxen in Burkina Faso

We are working in west Africa on mechanization for conservation agriculture. We have made major improvements to the planter and worked with the local blacksmith to develop low-crown, low-pitch angle sweeps that increased the effective cutting width 20% compared to shovels typically used, and the sweep design decreased the pulling force by 21%. We will be back in Burkina Faso in the fall to evaluate crop progress and continue with equipment evaluation and innovation.