All of the foregoing technological advances have been critically dependent on the availability of an abundant and economic supply of fossil fuels including diesel fuel for on-farm tractors and self-propelled machines; and natural gas, heavy fuel oil and coal for off-farm electricity generation.
The lower tillage intensity in Africa may simply reflect the abundance of land: in order to maximize labor productivity, people work thinly over a large area. Under the substitution view, the profitability of mechanization and its contribution to economic growth depend on the opportunities available to workers (and sometimes draft animals) released from their tasks.

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All of the foregoing technological advances have been critically dependent on the availability of an abundant and economic supply of fossil fuels including diesel fuel for on-farm tractors and self-propelled machines; and natural gas, heavy fuel oil and coal for off-farm electricity generation.
The lower tillage intensity in Africa may simply reflect the abundance of land: in order to maximize labor productivity, people work thinly over a large area. Under the substitution view, the profitability of mechanization and its contribution to economic growth depend on the opportunities available to workers (and sometimes draft animals) released from their tasks.

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