Agri-tech company , Hello Tractor has partnered with Heifer International to use technology to bring new ideas and disruptive innovations that will improve farming, increase food supply, and create jobs along the agricultural chain.
As part of this partnership, the two entities announced a scale-up of the Pay-As-You-Go (PAYG) model aimed at increasing access to tractor services under the latter’s tractor booking platform.
This was during a function held at Mascor Uganda, a renowned tractor dealership located at 6th Street Industrial Area in Kampala, on 12th September 2025, where ten (10) tractors were handed over to youthful entrepreneurs drawn from across Uganda under the 'Hello Tractor Booking Agents' pipeline.
Speaking during the launch at Mascor Uganda offices in Kampala, Ronald Wabwire , the Heifer International-Uganda Signature Programme Technical Lead, recognized the significance of the collaboration with agri-tech which unlock agri-finance for resource constrained smallholder farmers on the continent and in Uganda specifically.
"Our partnership with Hello Tractor, furthers Heifer International’s mission of ending global poverty and hunger while caring for the earth through increased food production and on-farm productivity," said Mr Wabire.
He noted that mixing different types of funding, local ideas, and strong partnerships was key to achieving profitable, scalable, and inclusive growth within rural communities.
“Since the pilot phase of the Tractors for Africa project launched in June 2022 in Uganda, Heifer through Hello Tractor has directly supported access to 26 Pay-As-You-Go tractors. These were matched with more tractors by Hello Tractor, bringing the total number of tractors active on the HT platform to 172 in Uganda. From this initiative, 396 tractor operators and 576 booking agents have been directly employed," ” Mr. Wabwire said.
Since its inception, he added, the tractor project has enabled 70,000 smallholder farmers to gain access to critical tractor services in the process, servicing a total of 183,000 acres.
Hello Tractor offers software and tracking devices that allow farmers to book tractor services from local tractor owners via a mobile phone application enabling owners to match the increasing demand for mechanized tractor services from farmers in Uganda.
Mr Wabire further emphasized that the African continent has the least number of tractors deployed per 1000 hectares of arable land - standing at less than 2 per 1000 hectares, compared to 10 per 1000 hectares in Asia.
"Perennial dependence on the hand hoe (80%), and animal traction (15%) has characterized our farming systems for decades, with its associated hard-labour. Consequently, only 40% of Africa’s arable land is being utilized due to lack of the necessary equipment to open it for production. This creates a dependency situation, where Uganda imports food worth USD 1.2 billion annually, losing out on foreign exchange," he added.
Also present at the event were tractor owners from the first cohort of PAYG renters. They testified how this patient capital and tractor service has transformed their communities.
“Dokolo Youth Oilseed Farmer’s Cooperative Society was among the tractor recipients in the first cohort under the PAYG financing model. I played an active role as a booking agent profiling farmers and mapping their land to demonstrate demand. The acquisition of the tractor by the cooperative with my support; and the impact it created in the community alongside the profits to the cooperative inspired me to apply for my own tractor," said Mr. Ogwang Moses Odongo, a booking agent with Dokolo Youth Oilseed Farmers’ Cooperative Society Ltd.
"Today, I am very excited to be one of the people who will get a tractor to boost my income while I service the overwhelming demand in my community.”
Joshua Waigolo, a youth entrepreneur from Kamuli district in Busoga also spoke about the benefits of the financial model for farmers.
“We have been struggling to access tractors in the Busoga region as most of them prioritize commercial sugarcane growers. With this new tractor, I am excited that smallholder farmers within my community will now always open their land in time to catch up with the growing seasons. This gives me an opportunity to pay for the tractor progressively while I provide the service; something I would never dream to own," Waigolo said.
Hello Tractor believes that this model will make tractors accessible to thousands of smallholder farmers via its increasingly popular PAYG platform.
“Hello Tractor, is committed to providing innovative financing, backed up by the requisite technology to enhance access to tractors for smallholder farmers. The PAYG product has performed remarkably; maintaining a repayment rate of 95% loan performance, well above the 86% average reported by commercial banks,” said Mr. James Macharia, Director of Credit, Hello Tractor Group.
He attributed this performance to patient capital offered in partnership with Heifer, favorable loan terms ranging between 36-60 months and a strong after sales service including periodic performance support, capacity building of tractor operators, technicians and collaboration with other eco-system players.
The head of operations at Hello Tractor Uganda, Frank Muhumuza said the tech company has serviced over one million farmers in the past.
"We have been able to create over 10,000 jobs here in the form of booking agents, tractor owners, themselves, and the operators. So it's something that's changing the landscape. When we are talking about impact, we are looking at enabling financing, which is data and tech enabled,"Muhumuza said.
"Once you have your tech that enables you to showcase demand in terms of booking then you get your tractor, as a booking agent. Unlike our indigenous banking sector, that way you will have to come up with a collateral, here, we are collateral free."