Parliament, Tuesday, 3 September 2019 - The Portfolio Committee on Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development undertook an oversight visit to KwaZulu-Natal from 26-30 August 2019. The Portfolio Committee visited four district municipalities – Umkhanyakude, Zululand, Umzinyathi and Umgugudlovu District Municipalities – visiting a number of farms. The committee made the following primary observations:
The post settlement support to farmers is generally characterised by poor levels of inter-departmental coordination and support. There is poor monitoring and evaluation of support programmes and this has impacted on the success of programmes. A large number of farmers have not been able to access post settlement support due to the requirement for business plans in order to access support.
Those who have been able to access post-settlement support face the challenge that many business plans set unrealistic targets and farmers have consequently been unable to achieve the desired goals. There is, in addition, a general problem with accountability and reporting on funds allocated and these require urgent intervention.
It appears that there is also a disconnect between the skills and training provided and the needs of the beneficiary farmers. Those who have been able to access post-settlement farmer support face a major problem with access to markets. This is a disaster and defeats the purpose of the programme.
A recurring feature related to the drought relief provided by government in the 2015/2016 financial year is the lack of accountability by farmers/trusts/government for the funds received. This is a matter that requires the urgent attention of the Minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development.
In conclusion, the Portfolio Committee has fulfilled its role of oversight and calls for a thorough review of the following:
1. Inter-departmental coordination.
2. Enhanced capacity to provide holistic and integrated support to farmers.
3. Provide greater capacity to ensure improved financial management across all programmes.
4. Improved access to available funding to ensure greater success of government interventions.
5. A greater focus on matching in respect of mentoring and partnerships.
6. A review of the skills and training paradigm to ensure relevance in respect of the needs of farmers.
7. The need for greater monitoring and evaluation capacity of the department in order to ensure that proper milestones for success are implemented across post-settlement support programmes.
8. Development of a database of beneficiaries of post-settlement support so that progress may be tracked and the efficacy of interventions may be assessed in a more structured way.
ISSUED BY PARLIAMENTARY COMMUNICATION SERVICES ON BEHALF OF THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE, LAND REFORM AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT, NKOSI ZWELIVELILE MANDELA.
For media enquiries or interviews with the Chairperson, please contact the Committee’s Media Officer:
Sureshinee Govender
Parliamentary Communication Services
Tel: 021 403 2239
Cell: 081 704 1109
E-mail: sugovender@parliament.gov.za
Arrange a tour