The Minister for Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Ms Tina Joemat-Pettersson, together with the Deputy Minister, Dr Pieter Mulder, have met with all the MECs of Agriculture, the chairperson of the Select Committee on Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (NCOP) and the chief executive officers of the state owned enterprises (SOEs) at their bi-monthly MinMec meeting.
This meeting discussed, among other things, the following:
* There will be a review process of the entire legislative mandate of the department, to align it with the requirements of the democratic state. This process will be driven by Deputy Minister Mulder, who will lead a task team made of, among others, ministerial advisors, the chairpersons of the parliamentary committees and representatives of the state-owned enterprises (SOEs). The main focus of the task team will be on acts which were promulgated before 1994, but will include all existing laws.
* Designing a framework that encourages, promotes and develops intra-African trade.
* Formulating a comprehensive and integrated government response to the challenges the Land Bank and some of the black farmers on its loan book are experiencing.
* Designing a programme for engagements with the most vulnerable sector in the farming sector, farm workers, through provincial farm worker summits, culminating in a national summit in 2010.
* Reviewing the existing development financing models of the department and formulating a more comprehensive and more effective funding mechanism.
With regards to distressed farmers on the Land Bank loan book, the ministers of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Rural Development and Land Reform and of Finance will be presenting a new model to Parliament in the next few weeks. The meeting also endorsed a process that looks at the introduction of a similar state institution as the old Agriculture Credit Board, which was dissolved in 2001.
The main aim would be to provide the farming sector with a comprehensive credit facility that can support both production and mortgage requirements as well as operational needs. Such a funding mechanism would be designed and geared to respond to most if not all farmers’ financial and credit challenges including disaster and rescue packages.
Minister Joemat-Pettersson also told MECs: “I want to give you more responsibilities by devolving the concurrent function of indigenous forest management to provinces.” This matter will be finalised when provinces have had an opportunity to digest the implications of such a move. The decision will be based on whether or not the move will strengthen the function or not.
The discussions and debates were characterised by enthusiastic participation, solution-driven and substantive. The minister and the MECs will meet again in two weeks to further assess and implement the MinMec decisions.
For further information contact:
Steve Galane
Cell: 083 635 7346
Tel: 012-319 7312
E-mail: DAIS@daff.gov.za
Issued by: Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries
23 October 2009
