EMERGING farmers in the Eastern Cape have received a welcome double boost in the form of major support to tobacco and sorghum growing in the region.
The first big development is the recent signing of a memorandum of understanding between British American Tobacco South Africa (BATSA) and the Eastern Cape Development Corporation (ECDC) to support emerging farmers. It promises to pave the way for a comeback for tobacco farming in the province.
BATSA will fund training in tobacco production and general mixed crop farming, as well as skills development, and will buy and process the tobacco produced by the farmers, while the ECDC will help to identify emerging farmers for inclusion in the programme, facilitate co-funding of co-operatives and programmes, and help to manage and monitor implementation.
“This public-private partnership is aligned with our provincial development plan of revitalising the rural economy. It is a significant milestone in ensuring we realise the objective of not only positioning the province as a food growing area but also develop agro processing in the rural areas,” said ECDC CEO Ndzondelelo Dlulane.
The development body will also assess the impact of the project on emerging farmers and local communities.
“As the farmers realise income from tobacco farming, the programme also addresses the issue of food security and poverty alleviation because of rotational food crop farming,” said Dlulane.
The Eastern Cape pilot project, which started in 2016 with consultations with the ECDC and the provincial Department of Agriculture, will be expanded in September 2018 with the planting of 10 hectares of tobacco and 10 hectares of alternate crops.
“Our commitment to transformation has led us to expand our programme from 33 tobacco growers in 2016 to 155 tobacco growers in 2018. We are excited to bring the benefits of this programme to the Eastern Cape, to create jobs and opportunities for the people of the province,” said BATSA CEO Soraya Benchikh.
“The Eastern Cape pilot project is very significant for BATSA because we are not only contributing to agricultural and rural development in the Balfour area, but kick-starting what will be the revival of Eastern Cape tobacco production in the Katriver region,” said Benchikh.
The revival of tobacco production in the Eastern Cape builds on the success of BATSA’s Emerging Farmers Initiative in the country’s northern tobacco-producing regions, which since launch in 2011 has facilitated the planting of over 800 ha of tobacco; planted over 1000 ha of vegetable crops; supported more than 3900 dependents, created over 2500 jobs, and invested over R70 million in the programme.
Tobacco is currently produced mainly in Limpopo (37.2%), Mpumalanga (54.7%) and the North-West Province (8.1%).
In a second shot in the arm for emerging farmers, the Diageo Empowerment Trust South Africa (DETSA) is extending opportunities to sorghum growers in the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal who would like to supply the United National Breweries. The opportunity is open to farmers who qualify as Exempt Micro Enterprises (EMEs) or Qualifying Small Enterprises (QSEs) in terms of the official Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment Codes.
The areas being targeted in the Eastern Cape are Mqekwezeni, Ngendese, and Tabase, while in KZN they are Danhauzer, Umzimkhulu and Vryheid.
“DETSA aims to stimulate community economies, create local jobs and grow the national economy. To do this, we aim to create a new cadre of successful black entrepreneurs and integrate them into the mainstream economy,” said Sinethemba Mafanya, Manager, Diageo Empowerment Trust SA.
“Creating a vibrant and competitive sorghum-farming sector is one of our key initiatives because it has the potential to provide opportunities for rural businesses, many of which are headed by women.”
“We are now looking for a second group of farmers who want to join this successful initiative and are eager to compete in bigger markets,” he says. “If you will commit to adhering to a precise growing programme, and can deliver as required, we would like to hear from you.”
DETSA will provide successful applicants with both capital and mentoring in order to maximise their chances of success. It will also help them market themselves to new markets to ensure vital cash flow.
Because the call is currently targeted at specific areas, DETSA will facilitate the applications for participation in this programme through its partner, Aurik Business Accelerator, and various channels will be used to reach interested farmers in those areas.
“This is a great opportunity to leverage traditional skills that our communities already possess, and use them to create prosperity in our disadvantaged, rural areas,” Mafanya said.