Economic opportunities

1. Yes, the Department provides support to agricultural projects across the entire Province. The support is mainly through the Comprehensive Agricultural Support Programme (CASP) whose aim it is to provide effective agricultural support services, promote and facilitate agricultural development by targeting beneficiaries of land restitution and redistribution, and other black producers who have acquired land through private means and are engaged in value-adding enterprises. During the 2015/16 financial year a total of 90 projects (smallholder and commercial) had been supported in the following commodities:  6 Wine grapes, 33 Fruit, 3 Citrus, 3 Table grapes, 8 Grain, 9 Vegetables, 1 Vegetable seed, 19 Animals (piggery, beef and poultry), 7 Sheep and Wool and 1 Aquaculture.

The Department had adopted a commodity approach since 2009; this is simply an arrangement that draws in multiple spheres of government and the private sector, each understanding their unique roles, working from the same plan, towards achieving the same outcomes. The value of this approach is that it has facilitated access to mentorship support and markets for smallholder farmers from their commercial counterparts in the Province, and thereby facilitates the graduation of the former into the higher category. Accordingly, a total of 48 mentors were appointed through the commodity approach to provide mentorship support to smallholder farmers – which is critical for development of smallholder farmers. It must be noted that the mentorship does not cost the Department as this is a contribution by the commercial agriculture towards the development of smallholder farmers. The Department also provided subsistence support to smallholder grain producers and their agri-workers throughout the drought season to help them maintain existing jobs. Furthermore a total of 141 community food gardens (including school gardens) had been supported to enhance food and nutrition security within communities.

1. We support agricultural projects in all 5 District Municipalities of the Western Cape, namely: i) Eden District; ii) Central Karoo; iii) Cape Winelands; iv) West Coast and v) Overberg
2. During the 2015/16 financial year, the Department had spent R160m on agricultural projects, subsistence, smallholder and commercial farmers. This does not include the expenditure for the delivery of extension and advisory support to these farmers, which is very important.
3. Land reform farmers and rural communities, benefit from our investment in these areas. In addition, these investment leads to creation of new jobs whilst also help maintain existing jobs within the sector.

(2) The commodity organisations contribute almost R80m annually through the commodity approach. For instance, the Fruit Industry has contributed R20m towards the Jobs Fund programme aimed at the commercialisation of black producers within the sub sector. In addition, the Department receives support from other government Departments, namely: Water and Sanitation, Rural Development and Land Reform and private sector partners such as SAB Miller, Shoprite Checkers in the delivery of food gardens – mainly for the World Food Day event, commemorated annually during the month of October.