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5
August 2018
Put up your hands to help
i
recently saw some disturbing figures. The chief economist
of Standard Bank calculated the cost of the Zuma Error (not
era) at more than R1 trillion. This could have created more
than a million job opportunities, which could easily have
cared for 4,5 million people. The amount would have earned
the state about R300 billion in tax revenue, and South Africa
would not have been humiliated with junk status.
However, I was extremely surprised at how the beneficiaries of
all the corruption are still shamelessly fighting for their positions at
the troughs. Nobody is confessing. No, the whistle-blowers are be-
ing suspended and fired instead. When is this going to stop? The
new men and women are probably first trying to patch or divert
the biggest pipes, and the smaller leaks will not receive any atten-
tion for quite some time.
With our director general at the Department of Agriculture, Forestry
and Fisheries butting heads with the minister again, I am reminded
of a remark by Kallie Schoeman (one of our executive members)
to the EFF when they threatened him with land occupation on his
farm: ‘You cannot scare me, I was born in Africa.’ That is probably
why we keep on surviving all the chaos.
While the one government department is basically collapsing, an-
other puts up its hand to assist. The Department of Science and
Technology is one such department that is more than ready to as-
sist agriculture. They regularly appear on our front stoep to find
out where they can help and provide significant funds to get agricul-
tural research going again.
Another group that is offering assistance is the universities that
quickly fill the gaps everywhere to support the agricultural sector
with research. This is really encouraging. One group just never has
money for anything, while another is eager to invest in agriculture.
You cannot but wonder what makes the difference. My best guess is
mere leadership. Visionary leaders with a strong character and high
ethical values make a significant difference on any platform.
After months of struggling and negotiating, SAGIS has at last pub-
lished the industry’s first maize export forecast. At least everyone
in the market now has an equal chance to know what the exports
will look like. There is a glimmer of light in the global tunnel when I
hear how greener fuel (ethanol) is appearing increasingly in global
policy documents. Signs that the demand for grain will continue to
rise are encouraging – if only the prices will keep pace as well. Else-
where in the world scientists are gathering to talk about gene editing
to increase the yields of crops and fight diseases.
We will have to work hard to make sure that the new technology is
available to our producers as soon as it hits the market. Exclusion
from this can seriously impair us, as we will not be able to partici-
pate in the growth of global markets. The turbulence in international
politics (particularly in the USA) can be a boon to our grain exports if
the cockerels on the big dunghills take each other on. If the sun
shines, we must make hay. With this in mind, our teams are working
industriously to develop new markets that until recently have been
buying large tonnages from the USA.