During a recent oversight visit to the Central Karoo District, the Democratic Alliance (DA) was alarmed to find that recent rainfall has not alleviated the drought that has plagued the region for the past seven years, and that farmers there are on the brink of despair. We therefor call on the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA), Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, to reinstate the classification of the drought as a State of Disaster that the Head of the National Disaster Management Centre, Dr Mmaphaka Tau, revoked on 16 July 2020, and to gazette all areas still affected by drought in all parts of the country.
Once the areas are gazetted, the Minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development, Thoko Didiza, should ensure that debt relief packages are made available through the Land Bank and commercial banks to ease the financial strain of farmers still suffering as a result of the drought.
...