The Department of Rural Development and Agrarian Reform in the Eastern Cape has launched maize harvest season in Ntabankulu.
The department invested R142 million this year to support farmers in the province. An estimated yield of 3 000 to 3 750 tons is expected.
Eastern Cape Premier Oscar Mabuyane says government aims to change the poor condition of this area.
“Overall, in Ntabankulu we are putting about 1 500 hectors, 1 000 of that are done by government. We are working with other partners, your grain South Africa and others, they have invested here. I know they have indicated a long time ago that they want to come to this eastern part of the province. The challenge that we’ve been having here is land tenure system, it’s a difficult one, it needs serious social facilitation because pieces of land belong to different homesteads and you must be very careful in facilitating that.”
Maize farmer Qhamani Mzobotshe says lack of land is a challenge. He says they are using a tenure system to grow the business.
“We have a problem with expansion of our grazing land. We also have a problem in terms of mechanisation because our model at Qhamani Nande we try to collect as much land from people we do not have means to work the land. So we use that land we plant maize at the end of harvesting season we give each household six bags of yellow maize that is already processed.”
