Correspondence from Eastern Region

Somewhere at Amaganya on the Nkurakan-Adukrom road, a small unknown community near Nkurakan in the Yilo Krobo Municipality of the Eastern Region, a 27-year-old man is dedicating his time, money, resources, and strength to bring to life innovations that seek to address complicated challenges plaguing Ghana’s farming and tourism space.

From molding and producing various hand-operated machines like rice shellers, maize shellers, cassava milling machines, gari processing machines, oil processing machines, etc. Kwaku Sylvester, a welder with five years of working experience has moved on to the ambitious drive to produce aircraft and vehicles capable of accessing farmlands and tourism centers located in the most rugged terrains.

To realize this task, he has already produced some prototypes of a helicopter and some pick-ups, one of which he has named the Buffalo, adding that the concept is a response to the difficulties farmers face in accessing their farms to undertake various farm-related activities.

Though final works on the prototypes are yet to be completed, he has already spent about GHS50,000 producing the Buffalo, GHS 6,000 on the other pick-up and GHS 10,000 on the helicopter.

He couldn’t envisage how much it would cost him in the end but he expects the cost of the prototypes to rise far higher.

Emphasizing on the driving factors, he asserted: “I did this purposely for farmers and tourists to enable them access areas where ordinary vehicles cannot, it can go anywhere.”

Sylvester who has attained formal education only up to JHS 1, said it has taken him seven months so far with the support of his seven apprentices to build the Buffalo brand and a couple of months to build the helicopter and other vehicles.

Engineered and still being built by the innovator, the vehicles appear to be the next-generation cross-country four-wheelers empowered with the forte to travel and access the mostly rugged terrains of most farming and tourism communities to safely meet extreme performance demands.

The Buffalo prototype vehicle currently powered by, a Benz 207 engine, combines high- performance, ultra-tough racing features with technical innovations, a fortified steel structure, and highly dynamic handling and acceleration.

The prototypes, he envisions, are to be used as farm machinery; the vehicles to access rugged farm terrains and the helicopter for spraying farms with insecticides, weedicides, and other chemicals and to fight bushfires.

At his shop, the welder empowered with the skills to produce various commercial and industrial machinery and equipment explained that the main drive behind producing the prototype vehicles and helicopter is to demonstrate to the world that his abilities go beyond just milling and shelling machines.

“I manufactured this vehicle to demonstrate that I can do anything and that I have the ideas to produce anything,” he said.

Sylvester, a married man and a father of a set of twins, hails from Otrokper in the Upper Manya Krobo District of the Eastern Region.

According to him, his gift is his innovation and ability to manufacture any equipment and machinery including even the non-existent. “I manufacture all types of machines, the existing type or even the type never seen before,” said the inventor.

Asked what his desires were for the project, the ambitious artisan answered, “My aim is to produce more for all who may need them and also produce more machinery for the farmers…I want to embark on mass production of the vehicles.

Embarking on the prototype projects, he explained is therefore to showcase his talent towards soliciting for support to accomplish his dream of manufacturing for the market.

Sylvester’s major challenges during the course of his exploits were occasional financial constraints coupled with constant discouragements from pessimists who attempted to dissuade him from abandoning his dream.

He appealed to corporate Ghana, organizations, philanthropists, and individuals to come on board and support him to put his dreams into reality.

One of Sylvester’s clients and assistant headmaster of the Asifaw M/A Basic School, Richardson Gyimah bearing testimony of the former’s craftiness, has ordered for a merry-go-round, a see-saw and a slide from the handicraft worker for recreational purposes of the pupils.

According to him, Sylvester’s astute craftiness encouraged them to seek his services.

According to him, some former students of the school upon completion have been enrolled in his shop to train and equip them with the necessary technical skills.

Watch the full interview below

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