The Industrial Development Cooperation [IDC] has announced an amount of R400 million worth of grants available for commercial farmers. Kgampi Bapela, the head of agro-processing and agriculture at IDC, announced during the Mzansi Young Farmers Indaba that the national department of agriculture has approved funding for agricultural projects.
“It is very important that as funding institutions we work together and stop working in silos because we not only offer funds, but we also offer different solutions that are meant to help farmers to grow.
“In as much as funds are important, the technical assistance for farmers is very critical and needed to enable farmers to flourish,” he said.
Bapela said the IDC aims to reach out to as many farmers as possible who meet the criteria for funding so that they could be assisted.
“Since we started in 2021 with the programme, we are ahead of what the department has set the target for us, so we are calling on young people to reach out,” he said.
‘Let us work together’
Kagiso Trust chief executive officer Mankodi Moitse has urged financial institutions not to compete with one another but complement each other.
“As Kagiso Trust, we have seen that agriculture is one of the sectors that is less transformed, we want to see farmers doing well.
“When banks see a farmer as a high risk, we are an institution that wants to de-risk the farmer so that they are able to start operating and producing food,” he said.
Newly-appointed Land Bank chief executive Themba Rikhotso told delegates that the bank had amended the blended finance application forms which farmers need to fill out to apply for the funds.
“Yes, we have received a lot of complaints regarding the application form from our clients who are farmers, and we have gone back to look at how we can make it easier for them. So, we are taking some corrective measures.
“We know the form was complex and we have therefore tried our level best to make it as easy as possible for farmers to be able to access the fund,” he added.
Rikhotso urged farmers to also play their part to make the process easier, “Do your paperwork well and make sure they are in order for us to be able to process it,” he said.
ALSO READ:‘Not every black farmer should be an emerging farmer
Sign up for Mzansi Today: Your daily take on the news and happenings from the agriculture value chain.
