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Over 300 farmers, farmworkers receive animal feed, groceries in drought-stricken E Cape

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More than 300 farmers and farmworkers’ families have benefited from donations, which include animal feed and groceries in the drought-stricken Dr Beyers Naude Municipality in the Eastern Cape.

Non-profit organisation, South African Water Warriors, made the donation as short-term relief for the farmers and their workers as parts of the Eastern Cape continue to bear the devastating effects of a prolonged drought.

Farm owner, Devon Smith, says the donations will give them the much-needed break.

“I mean two-thirds of my animals you either had to euthanise them, take them to be slaughtered, or let them die on your farm because of drought. This is one of the worst droughts we had in a long time in seven years no rain. Currently the Karoo bush, you see trees are dry there are no leaves,” adds Smith.

With no rainfall anticipated to fall any time soon, the farmers fear the worst. Another farm owner, Myhnhardt Loubser, says it will take some time for them to recover.

“Even if it starts raining, if you look at the square metre perhaps and you count how many Karoo bushes are in that square metre. We have lost 40% to 60% of your Karoo bushes. So, that is going to take 10 to 15 years for the veld to recover but that is on the long-term basis.”

The donations range from animal feed, groceries, and bottled water. They come from as far afield as the Western Cape and KwaZulu-Natal.

The pandemic has come with its own challenges, besides the exorbitant transport costs that the organisation is struggling with. Founder of South African Water Warriors, Deon Smit, says they spend close to R20 000 on a load of feed in one truck.

“The challenge is actually getting donations, it’s tough everyone is struggling not as much as they are, yourself everyone we’ve got our struggle in some way. So to get donations is very difficult at this stage. But, so far, we have been doing good.”

The drought in the province has resulted in job losses and a lack of income for the farmers.

In May, Water warriors embarked on a 60-vehicle relief effort to help drought-stricken farmers in the Karoo:

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