Farmers, local businesses, and citizens from across the Free State are heading to the Bloemfontein Golf Club this Friday to take part in the Agriculture.Golf Golf Day, 2022. The event, coordinated together with Free State Agriculture (FSA), is raising funds for rural safety.
With sponsors like Nashua, First National Bank, Opulentia, and Sygenta, amongst many others, the event aims to improve the safety of farmers and farmworkers in the rural Free State. Ignatius Van Niekerk, maize farmer and executive director at Opulentia, says that rural safety is a concern for most businesses in the Free State.
He explains that the economy of the province is largely based on agriculture, which is why farmer and farm worker safety is of paramount importance even to those who are not in the sector.
“If you look at the Free State, [most] business is very integrated with agriculture. Every time something bad happens in the rural areas, it does not just affect agriculture, it affects everybody. I came to realise that your local businesses are sometimes more concerned about farmer safety and farmworker safety than farmers themselves.”
Van Niekerk says that, once he realised local businesses were invested in farmer safety, he started thinking about how farmers, citizens, and local businesses can be brought together to contribute to local safety. His solution? Agriculture.Golf.
Golf Day 2022
Van Niekerk registered Agriculture.Golf in 2017, but the company laid fallow until 2021, when he joined with the FSA to arrange the first golf day. He says the response from local Free State businesses was overwhelming, and the day turned out to be a huge success. The response for this year’s event, he explains, was very similar.
“Our day is full. There’s loads of entertainment and every hole has a sponsor. At the end of the day, we all join hands, as business and as agriculture, and we contribute to safety training for the whole of the Free State. We need to look after the safety of our rural areas, as the economy of the province is built on agriculture.”
Golf is not the only activity on the list for this event. Neels van Jaarsveld, of Bang Bang Club fame, is master of ceremonies, while singing sensations Belinda + Amy, as well as Zak Steyn, will be wooing attendees.
Not only are businesses contributing to rural safety, says Van Niekerk, but they also get the opportunity to interact directly with farmers and showcase what they have to offer.
“When I was young, the province had its own agriculture show. Then it disappeared. Of course, you have NAMPO, but NAMPO is something else. There you are a small fish in a big pond. And your small businesses in the Free State can’t necessarily go to NAMPO because they will disappear. But this event is an opportunity for the smaller Free State businesses to showcase what they have.”
Van Niekerk says that taking on rural safety is a big task, but through this event, farmers and businesspeople can contribute to change in a meaningful way.
“Free State Agriculture is aiming for change. We’ll never have enough money for cameras and safety equipment, but with training, you can do so much. You can train 20 people today and that training will be passed over to other people. Education is the only way we can contribute to the bigger picture.”
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