The Sona love letter to SA's agric sector

The South African farming sector is resilient.

- Wandile Sihlobo

Punching above our weight: South African agriculture is proud to be a sector that is among the top 40 global agricultural exporters, the only African country on that list, says the writer.

(Jaco Wolmarans)

We have faced numerous challenges in the past and the sector has powered through — with high costs for farming family businesses and agribusinesses at times — but powered through nonetheless.We pride ourselves on being a sector that is among the top 40 global agricultural exporters, the only African country on that list, ensuring that South Africa is the most food-secure country in sub-Saharan Africa, at least at a national level. The sector has more than doubled in size since 1994.

The agricultural sector and its value chain employ more than a million people and generate numerous positive spillovers to agricultural towns and interlinked businesses.

But for this momentum to be sustained, we need to address the basics, which pose significant problems for the sector. Rural crime, inept municipal service delivery, crumbling water infrastructure, the need for additional export markets and animal diseases are among the key problems facing the sector.

Thankfully, some of these were highlighted in the State of the Nation Address (SONA). These mentions are important because they provide a roadmap for the government's programme of work and priorities. For example, President Cyril Ramaphosa stated, among other things:

"We have made progress in improving the performance of our ports and freight rail lines, steadily increasing the volume of goods that we move in and out of our country.

We have restored our passenger rail system. More and more commuters are now able to travel to work on new, locally made trains, significantly reducing their transport costs.

We are investing across our country in roads, bridges, rail lines, ports, dams, wind and solar farms."