CRADOCK — Rural Development and Land Reform Minister Gugile Nkwinti yesterday warned officials responsible for identifying land reform beneficiaries that the government would not tolerate nepotism and the exclusion of poor rural communities in favour of influential city dwellers.
Mr Nkwinti was responding to complaints from rural communities that smallholder farms were being distributed to people who had no farming interest but lived in the city and had political connections. “My department will fight this scourge of creating weekend farmers who only come during weekends to braai and often do little or no farming, which exacerbates the problem of agricultural land lying fallow,” he said.
Mr Nkwinti was addressing potential land reform beneficiaries and farmers at 13 farms covering about 8000ha around Cradock in the Eastern Cape’s Chris Hani district municipality. The aspiring farmers had been chosen to farm sugar beet and sorghum, which will feed a biofuel plant. Construction of the plant will start in July.
Chris Hani executive mayor Mxolisi Koyo complained of the “unfairness” of land distribution, saying locals were being sidelined and unknown individuals brought in to own farms without making a dent in unemployment.
Mr Nkwinti said the department had spent about R60m towards the acquisition of land for farming as well as for the construction of the Cradock e thanol p roject.
This would comprise the development of a commercially viable and sustainable bio-ethanol plant and related infrastructure.
The plant would produce about 90-million litres of fuel-grade ethanol in addition to co-products to be sold as high-protein components on the animal feed market.
Deputy director-general of rural development Vusi Mahlangu said that the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) had short-listed 13 companies that had tendered to build the plant. There were plans to buy about 30000ha to empower black emerging farmers who would work closely with various institutions to provide the plant with sugar beet or grain sorghum.
Following an application by Arengo 316, land had been rezoned at Cradock to develop an industrial park that would include the proposed plant.
Arengo is a joint venture between the IDC, Sugar Beet SA and the Central Energy Fund and was formed to develop and manage the ethanol plant.
Mr Nkwinti said the plant would make the Cradock region the country’s first strategic alternative fuel producer amid political instability in Iran, from where SA acquires at least 27% of its oil. The plant would have significant social and economic benefits and create jobs.
About 167 jobs would be created at the plant itself and an estimated 1500 would be generated in the agricultural sector, while a further 1 000 indirect jobs were also expected.
Last month, Arengo called on potential suppliers to submit their expressions of interest for the supply of grain sorghum feedstock — about 230000 ton s a year — for the ethanol project.
Interested parties would need to demonstrate the ability to acquire a minimum of 30% of grain sorghum volumes from local farmers or provincial black economic empowerment suppliers.
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Article source: http://www.businessday.co.za/Articles/Content.aspx?id=163509