Lack of funding and access to land are hindrances for young people aspiring to become farmers.
This is according to upcoming farmers at the Agri-Tech Expo.
The aim of the Expo held under the theme: “Empowering Youth for Inclusive Economic Growth through Agriculture and Innovation”, is to not only commemorate the 1976 Youth Uprising, but also recognise young people in agriculture.
The Agri-Tech Expo brings together farmers, entrepreneurs and industry specialists, as well as students to showcase the future of agriculture with the assistance of technology.
The first day of the two-day Agri Expo was held at the University of the Free State in Bloemfontein.
From discrimination due to living with disability, to lack of access to land – some farmers say not having financial support was their biggest challenge.
Crop and poultry farmer, Sibusiso Mogale, who is living with a disability, says he also faced discrimination and people, who tried to take advantage of him.
This while, Mashudu Ramafalo says she faced difficulties with growing her farm due to lack of funding opportunities.
“I would say the biggest challenge for me and most farmers, is definitely funding. Other than that, personally, I faced discrimination, and obviously people trying to take advantage of me. they see you and they are like, oh I see you can’t do much physically, so they try to bulldoze you to take thongs by force. and they tried that and it didn’t work.”
“Farming is not an easy thing and it has a lot of challenges. one challenge is financing; it has never been easing for one to go from point A to B.”
With access to land and finance hindering young aspiring farmers, the Provincial and National Department of Agriculture have come up with ways to tackle these challenges.
The Department’s Acting Deputy Director, Lebogang Botsheleng says 40% of the department’s budget meant to assist famers has been set aside for emerging young farmers.
The Free State Department of Agriculture is working on removing red tape and easing the application processes for funding opportunities.
Provincial acting Chief Director for Farmers Support and Development, George Madiba says, “Our young people are facing a challenge of access to land at via different stakeholders, some even want them to provide collateral before funding, so we are asking our stakeholders to please be lenient.”
The final day of the expo will focus on agro-processing, e-commerce and market access for young farmers.
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