Agriculture
(1) Whether his Department received any requests for support and/or advice from small-scale farmers in the Wuppertal or Biedouw areas in the past ten years; if so, what was the nature of the support and/or advice requested and provided;
(2) What is needed to improve the agricultural prospects of the farmers in the Wuppertal and Biedouw areas?
1. The Western Cape Department of Agriculture [WCDoA] received several requests for support and/or advice from subsistence farmers and producers in the Wupperthal / Biedouw area. The WCDoA supported thirty-six [36] subsistence farmers (Food Security projects) with a total value of R 1 520 387 over the past ten years. Most of the requests and support related to small stock, vegetables, fodder, rooibos production and infrastructure support.
The Department also supported five [5] CASP projects with a total value of R 3 370 961. These projects focused on irrigation water pipelines, fencing, and developing the Boer goat industry.
The WCDoA has placed three [3] government owned tractors in the communities of Wupperthal, Elselbank and Langkloof since 2013. These form part of the mechanization support centre in this area. These tractors are available at subsidised rates to farmers. Additionally, seventeen [17] pieces of equipment, such as trailers, ploughs, spreaders, etc. have been placed at the mechanisation centre and are currently being used by farmers and producers.
Farmers are trained and developed continuously. These include short courses, farmer information days, and demonstrations. The emerging farmers from the area have participated in the Clanwilliam Show each year for the past five [5] years (except during the Covid-19 Pandemic period). This event allows farmers to exhibit and compete with their livestock, network with industry leaders, and gain exposure to developments in the industry. This event also provides farmers with relevant training. Recently, a CASP request for support was received for the development of a rooibos tea processing court and related equipment. It is currently in the application phase.
Drought support has been provided to farmers from March 2018 – April 2020 as follows:
- Wuppertal, 147 farmers supported with a budget of R3 888 152,96;
- Biedouw [Clanwilliam], 87 farmers supported with a budget of R6 957 315,78.
2. It must be noted that Wupperthal consist of eleven [11] communities. A total of 36 000 ha is devoted to farming, and each community faces unique challenges. In general, providing storage/ dams for water for irrigation can increase agricultural prospects significantly.
The other challenge relates to land ownership, i.e the Moravian church which does not allow leases to be concluded at a local level, thus resulting in delays when residents / farmers seek funding for project development.
Road infrastructure is key for agricultural development as products must find their way to the market.
