Page 445 - Provincial Treasury Estimates.pdf

Estimates of the Provincial Revenue and Expenditure (EPRE) – 2023/24 Financial Year

The department’s strategic focus over the MTEF in support of the government’s seven priorities are:

x Increasing efficiencies and effectiveness of agricultural production and marketing.
x Intensification of agricultural commercialisation.
x Development of norms and standards on provision of agricultural infrastructure
x Exploiting development opportunities to increase entire value chain economic activities.
x Development of a Funding Model to enhance primary production by establishing a commercial
agriculture and innovation Fund in partnership with the ECDC and other commercial financial
institutions.
x Identification of the niche market in government Nutrition Programme whereby farmers will find a space
to consistently supply good quality produce at the right time.
x Participate fully in the one-plan District Development Model using the OR Tambo District as the model
in the Province.

2. 2. Review of the current financial year (2022/23)

2.1 Key achievements

Food security and commercialisation of agricultural sector remains critical in the development of the
province given its agricultural comparative advantage based on the vast natural resources that the
province possesses. Therefore, to encourage the adoption of controlled Land Use to achieve sustainable
use and management of natural agricultural resources through application of Act 43 of 1983 and Act 70 of
1970, for the period under review, the department managed to protect and/or rehabilitate 5 682 hectares
(ha) of productive land against an annual target of 6 480 ha, thus reviving production on land ruined by
invasion of foreign species. In addition, the department cultivated 350 hectares under the conservation
Agricultural Practises, against an annual target of 380 hectares.
By the end of 2021, the number of people suffering from acute hunger surpassed all previous records as
reported by the 2022 Global Report on Food Crises (GRFC), with close to 193 million people acutely food
insecure in 53 countries and territories. To that effect, the department, during the period under review
planted 20 818 hectares for production of field crops against an annual target of 28 529. This resulted in
a support of a total of 6 608 smallholder producers against an annual target of 8 547 and a total of 19 535
subsistence producers who were supported with the deliveries of maize seeds, fertilisers, fertilizer mixture,
Black Urea, and the related chemicals for the health and safety of these crops against an annual target of
22 620.

With regards to developing the cannabis industry the department is upgrading cannabis incubators in OR
Tambo and Amathole, and has completed upgrading a building at Magwa Tea Estate in OR Tambo, and
upgrades for Dohne will be completed by mid-April 2023. Currently, 273 cannabis farmers were supported
with Hemp Cultivation license applications of which 90 licenses were approved, and a total of 44 farmers
and 70 departmental officials received training on primary cultivation of hemp. Furthermore, 27 Cannabis
related communication and awareness conducted with strategic partners in Government to build a
coherent provincial & local cannabis working committee.
The Department continued with assisting farmers with veterinary support, in that routine vaccination of
cattle against anthrax and black quarter using a combination vaccine of anthrax and black quarter vaccine
was administered. As a result 1 139 million animals were vaccinated against controlled diseases, and
DRDAR has targeted (annual) to vaccinate 1 332 million animals.

A total of 92 agricultural infrastructure projects (consisting of fencing, dipping tanks, stock water dams,
livestock handling facilities and stock water systems) were established to improve agricultural productivity

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