From a young age, Xolisa Zamxaka understood the power of agriculture. The farmer and agricultural economist believes that agriculture is the answer in the battle against poverty in Mzansi. He is the founder of Ilitha Farming, a small-scale farming business in the Kei Farm Village of kuCentane, in the Eastern Cape.
Ilitha Farming is a mixed farming operation with vegetables and livestock, including poultry, cattle, goats, and pigs. Zamxaka’s vegetables are grown on four hectares of land while his livestock operations are run on communal lands in his native village.
Speaking to the inspiration behind Ilitha Farming, Zamxaka explains, “I was at home during Covid-19 when the notion for beginning Ilitha Farming came. We planted vegetables for household [use] then the idea came while I was in the garden to instruct people in farming through online platforms like Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Skype, WhatsApp, video calls – for the reason that people were not allowed to gather in small numbers at one place.”
Zamxaka also offers training and mentorship, as well as consultation services for new farmers in the Eastern Cape. The company also assists farmers in the province with services such as company registration, cooperative registration, mentorship services and farming business plans.
Learning from the best
Zamxaka was born and raised in the Kei Farm Village where he was surrounded by neighbours and family members who loved to grow their own food.
“As younger boys, we were groomed to look after livestock. We have been also expected to assist in the planting season with crops such as maize, beans and pumpkins.”
All that he learned about growing food was influenced by his late father, Mzimkhulua, a mine worker, and his mother, Nozuko, who were small-scale farmers.
He matriculated from the Phandulwazi Agricultural High School in Alice and completed his master’s degree in agricultural economics at Fort Hare University in 2015.
Just after he graduated, he worked for various organisations such as Umtiza Farmers Coop, which sells agricultural goods, Amathole District Municipality (ADM), Agricultural Research Council (ARC), Fort Cox Agricultural College, Cedara Agricultural College, and the department of rural development and agrarian reform.
Hearing the plight of his people
As the young man from a village, he knows the struggle of people who need a hand up but can’t find assistance to their plight. Zamxaka believes that people are keen to grow their own food and pursue farming but often struggle due to lack of training opportunities.
“Ilitha farming is a neighbourhood development programme. Its purpose [initially] was simply to farm for profit, however now it has been all about helping people from a disadvantaged background get proper agricultural training.”
Zamxaka sells his livestock and produce to Ngumbela Fruit and Vegetables in Butterworth. Eventually he hopes to expand his enterprise. “We also get large orders directly from people who have catering businesses.”
He works with two family members, who assist him when he needs extra hands.
Moving towards a sustainable future
His primary goal is to get a bigger farm where they can continue to farm both crops and livestock, and to employ farming graduates.
Zamxaka says that with changing climates and forecasts, in the long run food might be very expensive. People need to grow their own food now for a sustainable future, he believes.
“I highly recommend youth to enroll in agricultural related studies as we need more people to participate in the food production industry. Another good thing there are a lot of careers within agriculture industry which makes it very interesting career.”
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