Agriculture is a major player in the SADC regional economy, contributing 35 percent to its gross domestic product. About 70 percent of the population of the region depends on agriculture for food, income and employment. It is also a dominant source of exports in many countries, contributing about an average of 13 percent of total export earnings and about 66 percent of the value of the intra-regional trade. For these reasons performance of agriculture has a strong influence on the rate of economic growth, the level of employment, demand for the goods, economic stability and on food security, among other things in the region. Yet in rural areas like Mbizana, where subsistence farming is one of the “default” livelihoods, the communities experience poor food security, high levels of unemployment and poverty.
There is a need for rural communities to be mobilized to appreciate the potential that farming has in improving their livelihoods. As a result Teba Development in partnership with Lima Rural Development Foundation started an agriculture mentoring programme called “Abalimi Phambili” (Farmers First) four years ago in the Eastern Cape. The organisations decided to celebrate the success of this programme and mobilise more community involvement by holding a Field Day in Mbizana, Eastern Cape; allowing emerging and experienced farmers, suppliers and financiers of inputs to share experiences and build working relations. The Field Day took place on the 28th November 2006 at Mpunzi Drift in Mbizana, one of the local municipalities of the Eastern Cape province. The event was attended by 200 people including, local farmers of Mbizana, traditional leaders, the provincial departments of agriculture and social development and suppliers and financiers of farming inputs, local organisations such as the Wild Coast Development Trust also came to offer support.
On the day the South African Sugar Association (SASA) also made a contribution to the improvement of food security when it donated a power-hoe to emerging farmers of the Mpunzi Drift Irrigation Scheme. The farming tool will be used for tilling the land and prepare it for vegetable production. The power-hoe will be handy to the 100 emerging farmers of the Mpunzi Drift who stand to benefit from the donated tool. It can be fitted with other implements and can be used for other purposes including potato harvesting.
The limiting factor for the current farmers to meet the demand of these markets is the limited production capacity attributed to lack of appropriate farming implements. Limited use of relevant equipment also compromises the quality of the produce of the farmers and their produce become less attractive to the market. The donated tool will therefore, help the farmers to improve their production capacity and this will result in a subsequent increase in their income.
The population of Mbizana is 245 421 and 98.7 percent of the population lives in rural areas. Only a mere seven percent of the residents have access to basic water service and half of the total 45 728 households have no income. Although the Mbizana Municipal area is predominantly rural, with large tracks of arable land, the agricultural sector of the economy is poorly developed. The existing agriculture in the region is largely of a subsistence nature.
Celiwe Nsibande, SASA Corporate Investment Officer, explains why the Mpunzi Drift’s emerging farmers project ties in with the Sugar Association’s corporate social investment initiatives, “The sugar industry is committed to improving the quality of life of the communities based within the sugar-growing region, hence the vision of the sugar industry is to remain a valuable contributor to the economy in which it operates, and to be a relevant and valuable component of society by contributing to a vibrant, healthy and skilled civil society where all have an equitable opportunity to participate.
“As a sugar industry, we acknowledge that our ability to grow profitably and remain a lead producer of quality sugar is intimately linked to our ability to pursue development initiatives to the communities we work in. It is based on this understanding that we have committed ourselves to development initiatives that are pro-rural, prop-women, pro-agriculture and pro-education and aimed at sustainable livelihoods within the sugar-growing region”.
On accepting the power-hoe on behalf on the community, David Cooper, Teba Development Managing Director, says the aim of Abalimi Phambili is to provide a range of coordinated farmer support services to emerging farmers in seven municipalities of the Eastern Cape, which have predominately been labour sending areas of the mining industry.
“In this Field Day we celebrate a successful irrigation project established through the programme and we thank SASA for the donation of this tool in recognition of the achievements of the participants and further potential to grow”, concludes Cooper.
