The deciduous fruit industry has the potential to change the face of rural economies in South Africa, says Ismail Motala, the chairperson of the Deciduous Fruit Development Chamber.
Motala says excitement is building for the Deciduous Fruit Industry Transformation Awards on Thursday, 31 March. This event will see a number of high-profile business and other leaders touch down in the Mother City, including agriculture, land reform and rural development minister Thoko Didiza.
“The awards is about recognising the individuals and companies within the deciduous fruit industry who have played a very important transformation role over the past 28 years,” says Motala.
“We need to acknowledge the individuals, companies, and institutions that have brought us to where we are today in terms of transformation. Secondly, we need to encourage other role players and stakeholders to get involved, so we can increase the footprint of black producers within our country.”
Motala says the deciduous fruit industry is “one of the most technologically advanced industries in terms of cultivars etc..” However, black producers still face a number of challenges that hinders their full participation.
Access to finance remains problematic
“We want financial institutions to create products that are deciduous-industry specific; that understand patience with finance; that understand that our industry is capital intensive, but is an industry where you could have revenue for the next 25 to 30 years on that investment.”
Banking products created with this in mind, would go a long way in accelerating true agricultural transformation in South Africa, adds Motala.
“Financial institutions and the value players, we want them to come together and say we want to be part of transformation. This is the type of finance, schemes and loans we are prepared to put on the table in order to see development over the next 30 years.”
Asked about whether the deciduous fruit industry had really made enough progress since the dawn of Mzansi’s democracy, Motala described transformation as “a journey.”
“We, as industry leaders, have created the platform for this transformation. We would like it to be better than where we are. I would not say we have not achieved anything. Yes, we have achieved a substantial amount, but it is not where the masses would want to see us go.”
According to Motala this underscores the importance of the Deciduous Fruit Industry Transformation Awards.
“It brings government, stakeholders and private companies together to say, ‘How do we do better? What can we do better? What are we doing to achieve better results?’ Twenty-eight years later [since the 1994 elections] I certainly don’t believe we have fully achieved what we need to achieve. We have a long way to go. As an industry, we cannot do it on our own.”
A glitzy affair
Meanwhile, Dr Thembi Xaba, chief executive of the Deciduous Fruit Development Chamber, confirms that Didiza will deliver the keynote address at the Deciduous Fruit Industry Transformation Awards.
Winners will be announced on Thursday, 31 March during a glitzy affair at the Protea Hotel in Stellenbosch. Guests will be welcomed by Dr Ivan Meyer, the Western Cape minister of agriculture, while Reghart Strauss, the head of agribusiness in the province, will explore funding solutions for the deciduous fruit industry.
Afasa chairperson Neo Masithela will speak on the role that commodity organisations can play in advancing transformation. This, as Elias Monage, president of the Black Business Council, and Parks Tau, the MEC for economic development and agriculture in Gauteng, has also been confirmed to speak at the event.
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