The North West provincial government, through the department of agriculture and rural development, has embarked on establishing food gardens as part of their service delivery programme called Thuntsha Lerole. According to the government it is aimed at unblocking services to the communities.
The department said it was critical for communities to start having sustainable food security initiatives that would allow them to eat from their own garden in the midst of escalating prices of food.
Sustainability is key
MEC Desbo Mohono and the head of the department, Thupi Mokhatla, led the officials to support the locals in communities around Mahikeng by planting vegetable gardens, delivering fruit trees, seedlings, and fresh produce like cabbage, spinach, beetroot and eggs.
According to the department, the much-needed inputs were delivered to the Reteng Disability Centre in Uitkyk village, Mahole and Mokoena vegetable garden in Gelukspan, as well as households in Ramatlabama, Gelukspan and Bapong villages.
“When we deliver services like these, we can close many gaps because all executive members are able to respond directly to issues relevant to their area of work without any gatekeeping.
“The department I lead has a mammoth task of ensuring that families do not go to bed hungry. We therefore have taken this call by acting premier Nono Maloyi to penetrate communities. We will make a huge impact in the end, and that is our primary objective,” said Mohono.
Mohono, together with Mokhatla, further encouraged all beneficiaries to use inputs they received well so that they can have sustainable production.
Improving government interventions
She said going forward she would engage her counterparts so that the Reng Disability Centre, which is registered through the sister department of social development, is revamped and all their future endeavours can be achieved in a safe environment.
“The young people belonging to the Mahole and Mokoena vegetable garden project will be placed in the departmental extended public works programme for 12 months so that they save the funds they get from their garden production sales and use them to solely sustain their project,” she said.
Project leader, 29-year-old Moses Mokoena, expressed his gratitude for the assistance they received. Mokoena said since the inception of their one-hectare project in 2017, they had always wished for government injection.
He said government assistance will go a long way in boosting their confidence to run the business. Their produce has been sold through a steady informal market in Mahikeng town and Mokoena is adamant that they’d be able to enter formal markets in the near future.
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