Communal Farming: Let's Start With The Basics

- Shane Brody

Some estimates put the number of communal farmers in South Africa at almost three million. In all, the former homelands comprise about 15 million hectares, most of which is communal land (or commonage) owned by government and under the custodianship of traditional leaders.

According to my own research, former homeland-based communal farmers have access to a land asset base worth about R75 billion (at R5 000/ ha) and a livestock asset base worth another R75 billion. This could offer numerous opportunities, but the first step is to address the infrastructure and knowledge shortfalls that bedevil the communal farming sector.

These include unplanned lambing/ calving seasons (leading to high animal mortality rates and marketing constraints), a lack of water reticulation for livestock drinking water, inadequate fencing, management inefficiencies, and a generally poor knowledge of genetics and veterinary medicines, leading to immense economic losses within the sector annually.