Daily Archives: October 26, 2012

North West should become food basket of South Africa-Premier Modise

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BY Obakeng Maje

The training centre has been renewed to serve as a world class, accredited centre that should provide training and capacity building for subsistence and smallholder farmers.

This will include training on household food security, primary production and agro-processing/value adding, to reduce poverty, create decent employment and to improve rural livelihood as a breakthrough from poverty.

The agriculture sector in the North West Province should work towards increasing its food productivity to ensure that the province becomes the food basket of South Africa that should also feed the African continent, Premier Thandi Modise challenged stakeholders on Thursday.

In her keynote speech delivered at the historic launch of Kgora Farmers Training Centre held at Ramatlabama outside Mahikeng, Premier Modise said that food security cannot be treated in isolation from other developmental questions such as social protection, sources of income, rural and urban development, changing household structures, health, and access to land, water and inputs, retail markets, or education and nutritional knowledge“The pendulum has to swing in favour of our people, we have to rise up to the occasion and be counted as a Province that is combating poverty ruthlessly. We have reached a point whereby agricultural skills transfer is a priority that must not be compromised. Work has been done in prior years, but this time the farmers’ training model is modified to suit the needs of a developmental state,” emphasised the Premier

 

Modise highlighted that the provincial growth and development strategy has identified amongst many other programmes, agriculture as one of the key pillars for economic growth that should provide opportunities for the total empowerment of the people of the province.

 

Within the pillars of agriculture, the strategy speaks to emerging and established farmers, women in agriculture and youth in agriculture.

 

“The priority to divert skills to our people is inevitable because the problem of access to food affects about 32, 9% of the population of the Province. This means we are among the worst in this regard. Only 23, 6% of the households in the province are involved in agricultural activities,” the Premier stressed.MEC for Agriculture and Rural Development, Desbo Mohono said that her department as per the Premier’s pronouncement in the State of the Province in February spend R6 million to revamp the training centre situated on 802 hectares farm.The centre has  74 bed dormitories, 100 seats capacity lecture halls, 100 seater hall as well as other training support facilities will serve as a world class, accredited, income-generating farmer training centre that emulates “learning by doing” adopted from Netherlands.In her message of support, MEC for Social Development, Women, Children and People with Disabilities, Mosetsanagape Mokemele-Mothibi said that the centre will contribute towards intensifying War on Poverty programme and the Comprehensive Rural Development Programme for the benefit of vulnerable group in society.

 

Optimism and commitment to support the Provincial Food Security Project was also expressed by various stakeholders including the representatives of South African National Comprehensive African Agriculture Development Programme Team, The National Emergent Red Meat Producers’ Organisation (NERPO),  Agri SETA, Agri North West, African Farmers Association of South Africa (AFASA), NW African Farmers Union ,SA Essential Oil Business Incubator (SEOBI),Milk South Africa, and International Water Management Institute (IWMI).Project Management Coordinator at the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Elder Mtshiza said that the province is ahead of the pool and provides comfort in terms of the direction it is taking to meet the country’s needs.

The province’s huge potential for aguaculture given the fishery in its dams was highlighted by Director for Rural Fisheries Programme at Rhodes University, Qurban Rouhani who committed the university’s support for the centre.

 

Mma-Kgosi Ramokone Gopane representing Bahumagadi Forum, a organisation constituted by wives and mothers  of traditional leaders said that the province’s vision of training of emerging farmers to acquire knowledge about the theory of farming and skills in subsistence food production practices, poverty reduction through enough food production, and creation of employment is shared by rural women,women organisations and supported by traditional leaders in the province.Representative of Embassy of the Kingdom of Netherlands, Wilson Mngwambe commented the relevance of the project. Mngwambe said that land reform is as reality therefore new landowners need training to prepare them for productive farming.

 

Thabo Maseka from the Black African Young Farmers (BAYOFA) expressed appreciation for the initiative and pledged the support of the youth for the Premier’s visionary leadership.

 

Training and capacity building programmes to be offered at the centre include household food security, primary production and agro-processing/value adding. As part of the broad government agenda the programme will be aimed at reducing poverty, creating decent employment and improve rural livelihood.

 

 

Kubheka: Chiefs is Home of Football

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Johannesburg-Kaizer Chiefs head of youth development Kenneth ‘Conti’ Kubheka says he will bring the club’s culture and philosophy through their youth development structures.

 

The post was vacated by Walter Steenbok in 2010.

 

Kaizer Motaung has tasked Kubheka with revamping the club’s youth academy.

 

“I smell football in Naturena,” Kubheka told the club’s official website today. “This is a home of football and you feel that as you walk through the gate.”

 

Kubheka has spent the past few years working as Safa national director of coaching and stood in as caretaker coach of the national development team in the African National Championships (CHAN) qualifiers in 2010. He also did a stint as coach of First Division club Witbank Spurs in 2011.

 

Kubheka says Motaung has told his he wants to grow Chiefs’ development structures in the mould of Spanish giants Barcelona.

For more full story go to http://www.kickoff.com

Restoring Maternal Health Through  Sanitary Dignity Campaign Dialogue

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By Obakeng Maje

“The Department of Women, Children and People with Disabilities (DWCPD), as the coordinating arm of government and the custodian of the promotion and advancement of gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls, in partnership with other  Government departments, Civil Society as well as the Private Sector will today engage in a Sanitary Dignity Campaign Dialogue” They said in a statement. 

The campaign is intended at discussing how  provisioning or distribution of sanitary towels, disposable nappies and wipes can be made .

It  also aims at  optimizing areas of economic growth 

(empowerment level

 

) as well as improving the lifestyle of young girls in order to protect themselves.

Follow us on Twitter@Taung_DailyNews

 

A plan to oust Magashule fails

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Bloemfontein – Six ANC members seeking to have the Free State party conference of June 22 declared null and void lost their court application on Thursday, SABC news reported.

 

The Bloemfontein High Court dismissed the group’s application with costs.

 

They wanted a court order to stop provincial leader Ace Magashule, who was re-elected at the June conference, and his provincial executive committee (PEC), from working.

 

The six wanted the court to order the ANC to dissolve the Free State PEC and appoint an interim management structure.

 

The national ANC’s decision to accept and support the conference election results should also be put aside.

 

A spokesman for the group told the SABC: “Today the judge was very unfair because we have all the evidence… provided in terms of how the conference was rigged and we put it in front of the court.” – Sapa

Gauteng e-tolling expected to be announced

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Johannesburg – Further clarity on e-tolling in Gauteng is expected on Friday when the government makes an announcement on the system.

 
On Wednesday, the Inter-Ministerial Committee on the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project briefed Cabinet on the system. Cabinet then approved the gazetting of terms and conditions, including updated tariffs, that would apply to all users of Gauteng’s toll road network.
 
There would be a 30-day period for public comment. The government would then incorporate the comments and publish its final position after 14 days.
 
On Thursday, opposition parties said they were still opposed to the implementation of e-tolling.
 
The Freedom Front Plus said the government’s consultation process was merely a smoke screen to gather support for the system.
 
The Democratic Alliance said the public had to be aware that lower Gauteng e-toll tariffs could always be raised later.
 
Last month the Constitutional Court overturned an interim order which had put a hold to the Gauteng e-tolling project.
 
On April 28, the High Court in Pretoria granted the Opposition to Urban Tolling Alliance the interdict, ruling that a full review needed to be carried out before electronic tolling could be put into effect. The review was expected take place in the High Court in Pretoria on November. – Sapa

Minister Pravin Gordhan stands ground in spending

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Cape Town – South Africa cut its growth forecasts and predicted a wider budget deficit on Thursday, citing fallout from the worst mining strikes since apartheid, but Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan promised to cap spending to assuage bond investors’ concerns.

 

He also dismissed talk of a crisis in Africa’s biggest economy, where 100 000 workers have downed tools in the last three months, saying the country was on a firmer financial footing than most developed countries.

 

The Treasury cut its 2012 growth forecast to 2.5 percent from the 2.7 percent of earlier in the year, reflecting infrastructure bottlenecks and the impact of nearly three months of strikes in the platinum and gold mines.

 

In its outline for the next three fiscal years, it also raised the projected 2012/13 budget deficit to 4.8 percent of GDP, in line with a Reuters poll of economists. The Treasury had previously forecast a deficit of 4.6 percent.

 

Gordhan stressed that the widening deficit – which follows a current account deficit that ballooned to a nearly four-year high in the second quarter – was a result of slower economic growth and not government profligacy.

 

“There will be no additions to the overall spending level. Let me repeat that: there will be no additions to the overall spending level,” he told parliament, raising his arms for emphasis and deviating from his scripted speech.

 

Offshore investors have been worried that the mining unrest would put pressure on Gordhan to increase spending to ease the social tensions that led The Economist magazine to run a cover story last week entitled “Cry the Beloved Country – South Africa’s sad decline”.

 

But a combative Gordhan stressed Pretoria would not deviate from its spending plans – even after the national trauma of police killing of 34 strikers at Lonmin’s Marikana platinum mine – and vowed to keep total debt at a peak of 39 percent of GDP.

 

“Just for the sceptics amongst us: 39 percent,” he said, again abandoning his script. “Not the 90 percent of European countries or the 200 percent of Japan or the 120 percent of Italy. Thirty-nine percent.”

 

Recent downgrades by Moody’s and S&P were “inappropriate”, he said.

 

The rand rand initially firmed slightly against the dollar after Gordhan’s comments, before relinquishing some of the gains in line with a weaker euro.

 

“There was a bit of concern that the minister might have to increase expenditure given the weaker economic growth and more political pressure, but he has stood his ground,” said Christie Viljoen of NKC Independent Economists.

 

The rand plunged to a 3-1/2 low against the dollar earlier this month, nearly hitting the 9 .0 mark as investors worried about the impact of the strikes on an economy still trying to shrug off a 2008/09 recession.

 

“For the manufacturing sector, which has been asking for a weaker rand, this has been a welcome bonus,” Gordhan said in a interview with Reuters. “We would be concerned if the rand becomes any weaker – about the inflation impact.”

 

About 100 000 workers, mainly in the mines, have downed tools for better pay since August in a wave of strikes that has sparked credit downgrades by ratings agencies Moody’s and Standard and Poor’s.

 

Treasury said the strikes, which have hit platinum and gold output, have cost the economy just over R10-billion so far, but Gordhan insisted the overall state finances were sound.

 

“We are not about to fall over any cliff,” he said.

 

Despite his brave face, the Treasury scaled back its growth forecast for 2013 to 3.0 percent from the 3.6 percent seen in February. It expects growth to rise to 4.1 percent by 2015.

 

The Treasury said inflation would stay within the Reserve Bank’s 3-6 percent target band although rising international food prices, higher petrol costs and a weaker exchange rate would cause upward pressure during the second half of 2012. – Reuters