South Africa has an acute shortage of agricultural engineers when compared to other countries. However, this should not deter the country’s existing engineers from keeping up with international trends as they have a key part to play in the development of the agricultural sector and in ensuring that no one in Mzansi goes to bed hungry.
This was the central message on day one of the 2022 biennial symposium and continued professional development event hosted by the South African Institute of Agricultural Engineers (SAIAE).
The three-day conference, which kicked off in Tzaneen, Limpopo on Wednesday, 21 September, saw some of the country’s top engineers gather at the Fairview Hotel, Spa and Golf Resort.
The president of the Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA), Refiloe Buthelezi, emphasised the power of collaboration among professionals in taking the African continent forward.
She also commended Thabo Mavundza, president of the SAIAE, for allowing women to lead in the symposium. For the first time in history, 15 of the speakers are women who are making a mark in the field of agricultural engineering.
“We are here to find solutions as to how do we make sure a child goes to school with a full stomach in the midst of the challenges that we are facing as a nation.
“We need to be well-rounded engineers and we also need to keep up with what is happening in the rest of the world as far as engineering is concerned,” Buthelezi said.
Over the next few days, leaders in the agricultural engineering sphere will deliberate on various topics, from hydrology and water resource management to irrigation, dams and water use authorisation, food processing and environmental control, renewable energy, and much more.
This year’s symposium is sponsored by the Agricultural Research Council (ARC), Limpopo Tourism, CIGR International Commission of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, and the University of the Free State, amongst many others.
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Level up to international standards
Welcoming everyone in his opening address, Mavundza shared his excitement that the symposium was being hosted in his home town, for the first time in history.
“As engineers we have a huge role to play. During the pandemic we have carried the economy of South Africa,” he said.
Mabundza hoped that having the brightest engineering minds under one roof would bring about solutions to take their industry and the country’s economy forward.
Dr Mphekgo Maila from the Agricultural Research Council, meanwhile expressed his disappointment with the shortage of engineers in the country. When compared to other countries, South Africa is lagging behind, he said.
“For the development of any society, we need to have a certain number of engineers and here, unfortunately, we have about 1 out of 2 600 people who are engineers.”
Referring to international standards, Maila pointed out that the norm for a county is to have as much engineers as possible. China, with a population of over 1 billion people, has a large number of engineers. Maila said that South Africa needed to get to the same level as China.
“We need to encourage more young people to have an interest in the field and we need to capacitate them when they reach varsity level, because as much as many graduate, some end up going into different fields.”
Agri-engineers moving the country forward
Delivering his keynote address, deputy-general for spatial planning and land use management in the department of agriculture, land reform and rural development, Clinton Heiman, pointed out that agriculture remained one of the best performing sectors in the economy of the country. This, in spite of the challenging economic times.
Heiman said, “As a department we are committed to working with the agricultural sector and we are doing this by increasing agricultural investments and the expansion of farming land.
“We are targeting youth and women, people living with disability and by strengthening private-sector partnerships.”
Touching on climate change, Heiman stated that agriculture was threatened by the weather phenomena seen recently across the county.
“As a country we are very vulnerable to climate change, floods, heavy rain and diseases. We have adopted a climate change-smart agricultural framework which addresses vulnerability facing the sector,” he added.
Mavundza concluded by stating that the first day was a huge success. Based on the presentations put forward by the speakers, Mavundza is convinced that the sector is moving in the right direction.
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