“The contribution of commodity organisations to agricultural development”
Programme director
President of Agri SA, Mr Johannes Moller
Members of the Agri SA executive committee
Government officials
Agriculture South Africa representatives from provinces
Members of the business community
Fellow farmers
Ladies and gentlemen
Good day!
Dit is vir my aangenaam dat ons weer ontmoet na ons interaksie in Oktober 2009. Intussen is ons geseën met reën en son in die land, hoewel daar in sommige dele te veel reën en in ander weer te veel son was. As boere het ons geleer om alles te waardeer wat God aan ons skenk, omdat hy kragtig maar vol grasie en guns teenoor ons was.
Hoewel ons oorstromings kry, is dit nie so intens soos dit in ander lande gerapporteer word nie. Ons het droë tydperke beleef, hoewel effense vogtigheid verkieslik sou wees voordat toestande verder vererger. Boonop is ons ‘n volk met ‘n verskeidenheid kulture, sake en belange en vergader ons saam om te beplan vir die gemeenskaplike belang van al ons mense.
Ladies and gentlemen, 2010 is the year of action, where government will work faster and smarter! To this effect, ministers will sign a detailed delivery agreement with the president, on their respective delivery outcomes. Government has outlined its five key priority areas namely: education, health, rural development and land reform, creating decent work, and fighting crime. These areas will be the feature of the delivery agreements alluded to.
Food security and job creation are at the centre of government policy. With the world reeling from a recession that intensified during 2009, we were not spared, but experienced its manifestation in various forms, with the most glaring and painful of all being the rise in unemployment. Many looked at us Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries for job creation solutions.
You will recall that during my budget vote of 2009, I indicated, referring to the learned statement made by the economist Mike Schussler, that “for the first time since the 1800s the agricultural sector was bigger than the mining sector”. Reference was also made to the sector’s potential to create the highest number of jobs per R1 million investments.
Unfortunately, the sector’s performance in job creation in the same year was dismal. According to the Statistics South Africa’s South Africa Employment Times: Jobs, unemployment and hiring statistics for Q4 2009, instead of creating jobs, the sector shed 57 000 jobs. This means that, our job creation target is at a deficit.
The economic sectors and employment cluster has to reach a job creation target of 45 percent by 2015. It calls for us to be in the cutting edge of finding smart solutions to realise our contribution. The sector’s significant role is in the top government priorities where we play a crucial role in the Economic Sectors and Employment cluster as well as the Infrastructure Development cluster. With the new government Monitoring and Evaluation units, the performance of these sectors will come under sharp review.
To this end, government made policy commitments to continued Research and development. In this current financial year ending 31 March 2010, we allocated approximately R11,9 million to research and development and added a further R573,1 million to the Agricultural Research Council (ARC).
Our efforts are geared towards innovation and the development of smallholders and the continued support of commercial producers, through among others distribution of empowering information that will support the improvement of yields, reduce the negative environmental impact, maximise use of resources such as innovative ways of increased productivity on the land that is available, improving the quality of produce as well as access to markets.
One of the key challenges facing the growth of agriculture, forestry and fisheries is the declining investment in the sector. Government has engaged in extensive planning around infrastructure investment. This also includes consultations with our sister departments like the Department of Transport, discussing ways of addressing the agro-logistics as raised in the chief executive officer’s forum. Progress in this area will be closely monitored by the infrastructure and Development cluster.
Dames en here, Agriculture South Africa het waarskynlik gedink dat hulle so ‘n voorsmakie kan kry van my begrotingstoespraak. Soos u verneem het, het ek nie in die 2010/11 begroting aangedui hoeveel bystand verleen sal word aan al die regeringsprogramme waarna ek verwys het nie. Dit sou nie regverdig wees as ek u so ‘n kykie daarin gee nie. Terselfdertyd doen ek ‘n beroep op u ondersteuning vir hierdie belangrike gebeurtenis as ek die begroting voorlees.
The Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries encourages the valuable contributions by organised agriculture in the interest of serving our commercial farmers in so doing promoting production. The chief executive officer’s forum is one of our crucial platforms to engage with the sector, creating synergies in growing enhancing the performance of agriculture, forestry and fisheries in the gross domestic product (GDP) contribution.
Let me then pause and invite the regional coordinator of Agriculture Eastern Cape to channel his concerns to his President Mr Johannes Möller, for our collective attention. I must assure you that I am in constant contact with Mr Möller and any pressing matter from you will reach me through his office. I appeal that our sector should not be the one dealing with our issues through the mainstream media.
While this department is fairly new and finalising its form and structure, historically; the role of commodity organisations in the development of the sector involved arrangements that saw commercial farmers generously handholding their upcoming colleagues and imparting valuable skills and knowledge.
Through the Mentorship programme implemented by 12 commodity organisations contracted to the department, by end of March 2009, 182 projects with 4 658 beneficiaries received mentorship support. Figures for the year ending March 2010 will be released by September of this year. We commend and applaud this partnership.
Programme director, we are disappointed with the continued subsidies of developed countries for their agriculture. We will continue protecting our producers from unfair competition and differentiate them through the agricultural trade and tariff policy.
In this regard, I am pleased that the significant role of the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries was elevated by the appointment of our official in the capacity of commissioner of the International Trade Administration Commission (ITAC), the tariff fixing body under the auspices of the Department of Trade and Industry.
Ladies and gentlemen, in addition to the efforts made in the Doha Development Round of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) towards a substantial and real reduction in trade and production distorting domestic support, South Africa will not make additional commitments in bilateral agreements for products that receive trade distorting support. This will in a way, open up opportunities for our local producers, so that they can fill the market gaps.
Taking a cue from the organisation of the United Nations, Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO), we will continue supporting smallholders systematically focusing on high value efforts through the green revolution approach whilst increasing aggregate agricultural production, laying emphasis among others, mechanisation to improve the traditional farming practices of smallholders.
While this group has the potential to increase their economic contribution in the sector, it continues to be underproductive and economically unsustainable. In the estimated two million hectares of idle agricultural land, many of it is in the hands of smallholders.
Programme director, some of the challenges faced by smallholders include shortage of capital and skills, labour and increasing input costs, among others, leading to substantial unproductive and abandonment of these otherwise potentially productive smallholdings.
Verlede jaar het die department ingegryp in die naderende sekwestrasie van boerderyondernemings met Landbankskuld. In hierdie verband is nie minder nie as 77 gevalle reeds geoormerk vir noodbystand. Dit sal aan hierdie boere minstens drie jaar gee om hulle besighede in orde te kry. Boonop sal produksielenings ter waarde van R136 miljoen beskikbaar wees deur middel van die Mafisa-fonds vir hierdie bestaansboere.
In the next financial year, these will be supported by a one stop shop funding unit which will consolidate all development funding resources and make these accessible to needy potential operations and supported by research and extension service.
On the issue of the role of government in achieving national food security versus household food security, it is important to acknowledge that South Africa’s agriculture is dualistic in nature comprising large-scale commercial farming and smallholders (including some subsistence). This sector contributes about 99 percent of the South Africa’s marketed agricultural output which contributes almost 100 percent of the sector’s contribution to the gross domestic product (GDP) of 3,3 percent. From this sector the national food availability is therefore determined, but the national food security is broader than just availability of food.
There has been a steady decline in the overall agricultural productivity, from the period between 1994/95 and 2008/09 the overall area under production declined by 30 percent. This has seen South Africa importing 40 percent more agricultural products recently than it had for the past five years.
However, amidst the global economic recession, the net trade of South Africa’s agricultural products remained positive. The value of our export increased by 46,4 percent from R33,656 million in June 2008 to R49,278 in June 2009.
Ladies and gentlemen, I call to you to work together with government, because in this year of action; if we work together, faster and smarter, we can do more!
Dames en here, die Sake Beeld van 23 Februarie 2010 het geskryf dat vir die eerste keer in die 350 jaar van die Suid Afrikaanse wynbedryf is meer Suid Afrikaanse as Franse wyn in Brittanje verkoop. Die jongste verslag van die ontledingsagentskap van AC Nielsen toon Suid Afrikaanse wyne het in die 12 maande to 23 Januarie vanjaar met 20 percent in volume gegroei tot 2,27 miljoen nege liter-kiste teenoor Franse wyne se afname van 12 percent tot 12,266 miljoen nege liter kiste.
While our export to the European Union is continuing strongly with the examples of the South African wines elbowing French wines off United Kingdom retail shelves, we need to replicate this in other markets and in other commodities.
During my official visits to other countries, I have entering into various agreements with the aim of opening up markets for our local commodities. Still, there are other markets that need further exploring, for instance, we need to make way into the Middle East and tap the potential export opportunities. This does not rule out further expansion into our current markets, including the Far East.
Programme director, government has committed to supporting the sector to increase production, create jobs and increase contribution into the GDP. In this year of action, together with the sector, we must work faster and smarter to deliver food security for our country, job creation for our fellow countrymen and continued increasing contribution into the GDP.
I thank you.
Issued by: Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries
26 February 2010
Source: Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (http://www.daff.gov.za/)
