By OBAKENG MAJE
20 August 2025- The Northern Cape MEC for Land Reform, Agriculture and Nature Conservation and Environmental Affairs, Mase Manopole has successfully hosted the The Northern Cape Blended Finance Roadshow held at Flamingo View in Kimberley. Manopole said this was in collaboration with the National Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (DALRRD), the Land Bank, Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), and Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA), under the theme “Unlocking Inclusive Agricultural Development in the Northern Cape.”
She further said the event provided a platform to raise awareness of blended finance opportunities for farmers, improve access to affordable and sustainable finance, and foster meaningful engagement between policymakers, financiers and farmers to explore innovative financing mechanisms aimed at addressing persistent challenges in the agricultural sector.
Manopole added that, blended finance, combining concessional public funding with private sector investment, was a strategic tool to bridge the agricultural financing gap.
“We note that smallholder and emerging farmers often face barriers such as limited collateral, climate-related risks, and high production costs, making access to affordable credit difficult.
“In the past year, over 1000 producers received training, 1300 subsistence farmers were supported with garden establishment packs, agriculture contributed R11 billion to the provincial GDP in 2023 as reported by Stats SA,” she said.
Manopole said 13 000 new jobs were created in the Quarter 3 and Quarter 4 of 2024. She said looking ahead, her department aims to increase agriculture’s GDP contribution from 7% to 10%, support 60 land reform farms, train another 1000 producers and create 750 additional jobs in the sector.
“The road to agricultural prosperity is long, but it is not out of reach. When resilience meets opportunity, transformation follows.
“Through blended finance, we can unlock not only funding but the full potential of the Northern Cape’s agricultural sector,” said Manopole.
She said over 600 farmers from all five districts of the Northern Cape attended the roadshow, welcoming it with open arms as a gateway to unlocking financial opportunities. Manopole said the roadshow concluded with a strong call for partnership and accountability, reinforcing that blended finance is not a handout but a collaborative investment in sustainable agricultural growth and rural economic empowerment.
The Guardian 