Farmer development division
Afdeling Ontwikkelende landbou
en Mthatha in die Oos-Kaap en die Paarl in die Wes-Kaap
(tien kantore in totaal, asook Bloemfontein, vanwaar
hierdie program bestuur word). Hierdie kantore is almal
strategies geplaas om ‘n wye gebied te diens waar
graan winsgewend geproduseer kan word, en waar
ontwikkelende boere toegang tot grond het.
FOKUS VAN DIE PROGRAM
Die missie van die program is “Om volhoubare graan-
boere met kapasiteit te ontwikkel en tot huishoudelike en
nasionale voedselsekerheid by te dra deur die optimale
gebruik van die grond wat tot elke boer se beskikking
is”. Boere in hierdie program verteenwoordig alle vorms
van grondbesitreg – kommunale grond wat deur die
stamowerheid bestuur word terwyl die regering dit besit,
dorpsgrond wat deur die plaaslike munisipaliteite besit en
bestuur word, herverdelingsboere, boere wat grond met
herverdeling ontvang het, eie privaat grond, sowel as
gehuurde privaat grond. Die grondherverdelingsprogram
sluit die Vestigingsgrondverkrygingstoekenning (SLAG),
waar groepe of gesinne op grond gevestig is, die
Grondherverdeling vir Landbou-ontwikkeling (LRAD),
en die Proaktiewe Grondverkrygingskema (PLAS) in. In
die eerste twee gevalle besit die boere die grond, terwyl
die staat in die laaste skema die grond besit en aan die
begunstigdes verhuur.
Die studie van menslike ontwikkeling het die afgelope
paar dekades ‘n fokuspunt geword en deur verskillende
intervensies in talle lande het dit duidelik geword dat die
belangrikste faktor wat tot volhoubare ontwikkeling lei, die
ontwikkeling is van die vermoëns van die individu wat vir
hulle eie lotsbestemming verantwoordelikheid moet neem.
Dit is as gevolg van al hierdie studies dat ons ons oortuigings
ontwikkel het:
► Boere moet bemagtig word om self te boer
(kontrakteurs moenie namens hulle boer nie).
► Waar hoegenaamd moontlik, moet boere hulle eie
toerusting besit en nie op die aktiwiteite van ander
diensverskaffers staatmaak nie.
► Boere met plase van alle groottes kan bygestaan word
om die grond te gebruik wat tot hulle beskikking is deur
die modernste metodes van gewasproduksie te gebruik.
► Die maatstaf van sukses is die volhoubare produksie
van winsgewende gewasse op elke hektaar (en nie die
totale getal hektaar aangeplant of die totale aantal
ton geoes nie).
AKTIWITEITE IN DIE PROGRAM
Ten einde die genoemde menslike ontwikkeling te verseker,
is ‘n aantal verskillende projekte deur middel van hierdie
program ontwikkel, en elkeen dra ‘n eiesoortige aspek van
die vaardigheidsoordrag by.
STUDIEGROEPE
Die studiegroepe is altyd die eerste toetreepunt. Deur die
studiegroepe het die ontwikkelingskoördineerders op ‘n
gereelde grondslag toegang tot die boere en kan hulle
voorligting oor alle aspekte van produksie, bemarking
en bestuur aan die boere gee. Die studiegroepe vorm
ook die kontakpunte vir die aanplant van demonstrasie-
proewe, die aanbied van boeredae, die identifisering
van die kandidate vir Boer van die Jaar, die identifisering
van boere vir die gevorderde boerprogram en herkapita-
lisering, kommunikasie met boere oor opleidingskursusse,
ensovoorts. Namate die boere oor die jare heen meer
Kokstad, Maclear and Mthatha in the Eastern Cape, and
Paarl in the Western Cape (ten offices in total as well as
Bloemfontein, from where this programme is managed).
These offices have all been strategically placed to
service a wide area where grain can be produced
profitably and where developing farmers have
access to land.
FOCUS OF THE PROGRAMME
The mission of our programme is ‘To develop capacitated
sustainable grain farmers, and to contribute to household
and national food security through the optimal use of the
land available to each farmer’. Farmers in this programme
fall under all forms of land tenure – communal land that
is managed by the tribal authority while owned by the
government, commonage that is owned and managed
by the local municipalities, restitution farmers, farmers who
have been the recipients of land through redistribution,
own private land, as well as leased private land. The
land redistribution programme includes the Settlement
Land Acquisition Grant (SLAG), through which groups of
families have been settled on land; the Land Redistribution
for Agricultural Development (LRAD), and the Proactive
Land Acquisition Scheme (PLAS). In the first two cases
the farmers own the land, while in the latter scheme
the government owns the land and leases it to the
beneficiaries.
The study of human development has become a focus
area over the past few decades and through various
interventions in many countries it has become evident
that the most important factor that leads to sustainable
development is the development of the capacity of the
individual, who has to take responsibility for their own
destiny. As a result of all these studies we have developed
our beliefs:
► Farmers should be empowered to farm for themselves
(contractors should not farm for them).
► Where at all possible, farmers should own their own
equipment and not rely on the activities of other
service providers.
► Farmers with farms of all sizes can be assisted to use the
land that is available to them using the most modern
methods of crop production.
► The measure of success is the sustainable production
of profitable crops on every hectare (and not the total
number of hectares planted, or the total number of tons
harvested).
ACTIVITIES IN THE PROGRAMME
In order to achieve the human development mentioned, a
number of different projects have been developed through
this programme, each contributing a unique aspect of the
skills transfer.
STUDY GROUPS
The study groups are always the first point of entry. Through
the study groups, the development co-ordinators have
access to the farmers on a regular basis and they are
able to lecture the farmers on all aspects of production,
marketing and management. The study groups also form
the contact points for the planting of demonstration trials,
hosting of farmer’s days, identification of candidates
for the Farmer of the Year, identification of farmers for
the advanced farmer programme and recapitalisation,
notification of farmers about training courses, etc. As the
Grain sa farmer development programme (continued)
Graan SA ontwikkelende landbouprogram (vervolg)
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9. Jurie Mentz
Development Co-ordinator: Vryheid
Ontwikkelingskoördineerder: Vryheid
10. LEBOGANG Mogatlanyane
Office Assistant: Lichtenburg
Kantoorassistent: Lichtenburg
11. Julius Motsoeneng
Development Co-ordinator: Taung
Ontwikkelingskoördineerder: Taung
12. Cwayita Mpotyi
Office Assistant: Mthatha
Kantoorassistent: Mthatha
13. Jerry Mthombothi
Development Co-ordinator: Nelspruit
Ontwikkelingskoördineerder: Nelspruit
14. Vusi Ngesi
Development Co-ordinator: Maclear
Ontwikkelingskoördineerder: Maclear
15. Sydwell Nkosi
Office Assistant: Vryheid
Kantoorassistent: Vryheid
gevorderd geraak het, het hulle die behoefte uitgespreek
vir meer gevorderde inligting, terwyl die progressiewe
boere die minder gevorderde boere gehelp het. Dit is
meer kostedoeltreffend om boere in ‘n groep as op ‘n
individuele grondslag te diens, en hulle leer meer uit die
vrae van ander boere.
Gedurende hierdie jaar het die span 1 265 studiegroepver-
gaderings vir die 6 525 aktiewe studiegroeplede aangebied.
Die tabel hieronder toon die getalle van studiegroepe wat
deur elke streek gediens word.
DEMONSTRASIEPROEwe EN
Creation and servicing of study groups
Skep en diens van studiegroepe
Province
Provinsie
Town
Dorp
Co-ordinator
Koördineerder
Number of study groups
Aantal studiegroepe
Number of members
Aantal lede
Eastern Cape/
Oos-Kaap
Kokstad
Ian Househam
14
905
Eastern Cape/
Oos-Kaap
Mthatha
Lawrence Luthango
20
861
Eastern Cape/
Oos-Kaap
Maclear
Vusi Ngesi
14
724
Free State/
Vrystaat
Ladybrand
Johan Kriel
14
584
KwaZulu-Natal
Dundee
Jurie Mentz
14
810
Mpumalanga
Nelspruit
Jerry Mthombothi
20
1 174
Mpumalanga
Standerton/Louwsburg Graeme Engelbrecht
14
717
North West/
Noordwes
Lichtenburg
DuToit van der Westhuizen
10
582
North West/
Noordwes
Taung
Julius Motsoeneng
5
97
Western Cape/
Wes-Kaap
Paarl
Liana Stroebel
6
71
Total/
Totaal
131
6 525
farmers have become more advanced over the years,
they have expressed the need for more advanced
information, while the progressive farmers have assisted
the less advanced farmers. Servicing farmers in a group is
more cost effective than servicing on an individual basis,
and they learn more from the questions of the
other farmers.
During this year the team has held 1 265 study group
meetings for the 6 525 active study group members. The
table below shows the numbers of study groups that are
serviced by each region.
DEMONSTRATION TRIALS AND FARMERs DAYS
In the less commercialised areas the demonstration
trials have to be done so that the developing farmers
can see and experience the results of good production
practices – correct soil preparation, correct application
of lime (if applicable), correct fertilisation (on the basis
of soil sampling), correct plant population and cultivar
selection, proper weed and pest control, etc. – and then
BOEREDAE
In die minder-gekommersialiseerde gebiede moet
demonstrasieproewe gedoen word sodat ontwikkelende
boere die resultate van goeie produksiepraktyke kan
sien en ervaar – korrekte grondvoorbereiding, korrekte
toediening van kalk (indien van toepassing), korrekte
bemesting (op grond van grondmonsterneming), die
korrekte plantpopulasie en kultivarseleksie, behoorlike
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