BuaNews (Tshwane)
Janine du Plessis
28 August 2007
More work is needed to protect the rights of female farm workers, says Minister of Agriculture and Land Affairs Lulu Xingwana.
Addressing the 4th Women's Parliament in Cape Town, Tuesday, the minister said there was still a lot of work which needed to be done to reduce human rights abuses and violence against women on commercial farms.
There are 2.6 million people working as labourers on farms.
The minister identified KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga, the Free State, Grabouw, Worcester as some of the hot spots for these issues.
Ms Xingwana said, however, various government departments, farmers unions and other stakeholders had already come together to improve the living conditions of farm workers and the rights of women.
A paper is being drafted in this regard and the department has also agreed to launch a land equity project.
"We need to acquire land for farm dwellers that have been living on the land for over ten years. Our department must provide all the necessary funds," she said.
She said her department had agreed to provide skills and train new beneficiaries of land claims, to ensure they are able to take over once they have attained the land.
"Since 1994 a number of laws have been passed and government has put programmes in place to ensure the access to land and property.
"Land restitution seeks to bring equity and redistribute 30 percent of white-owned commercial agricultural land to black people and women," said the minister.
Women in Agriculture and Rural Development (WARD) launched in October last year, is a vehicle to ensuring women participating in land restitution.
"Women in agriculture must ensure they get their equitable share," said Ms Xingwana.
The minister said everyone had the right to access land, and that included women.
"There are over 3 million hectares of state-owned land, suitable for agriculture, standing unplanted. Wealth is in the land so there is no need to remain poor and hungry when we have so much fertile land," she said.
As the average age for a commercial farm worker is 55, the department is also faced with a gap in generations.
"Agriculture does not have a future unless we can replenish these people and their skills. We need to capacitate and train workers, women and children to take over."
For this reason the Youth in Agriculture and Rural Development was launched and the minister urged the women attending Women's Parliament to take advantage of this.
Ms Xingwana said goats, cattle, pigs and sheep must no longer be "dead assets" in the hands of the poor and black emerging farmers.
"Less than 10 percent of emerging farmers' livestock reach the market. This means the farmers can not convert these assets into a means to make money."
In 2007, in her budget vote speech the minister introduced a livestock massification programme.
"In two to three years South Africa should improve livestock production to become a net exporter of red meat. We want to increase the livestock production in not only black emerging farmers and women. We have taken a pro-poor approach," she said.
Ten youths are currently in China learning how to set up fish farming in South Africa. This will also open up vast opportunities for women.
The minister announced that on Saturday she would be in the Northern Cape to launch the Amanguni project where she would be handing over ten cows and ten bulls to women, to begin their own livestock production.
Deputy President, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka will also soon be launching an olive-tree project where, down the value chain women are to make olive oil for export
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