Tshwane Agriculture towards a Food Secure City in 2055: GDS Stakeholder Consultation Session

Director: Agricultural Development Programmes, N. Maine

Background

• Agriculture will inevitably play an important role in the economies of countries world-wide in the future as the population grows.

• Even though agriculture’s contribution to the overall country’s employment in recent times has decreased, it is a significant employer and delivers more jobs per Rand invested than any other sector.

• Agriculture provides a meaningful opportunity to alleviate poverty in rural and peri-urban areas.

• Through both backward and forward linkages, local economies can be stimulated.

Food security: A parable?

• Economists already predict food shortage in 50 years to come when less food will be produced than is needed.

• Some already argue that food shortage is currently under-estimated; food crises will surely come back as is currently the case in the Sahel region.

• Double digits inflation a probability; in South Africa food inflation in the next 6-8 months is estimated between 12 and 15%. Food inflation will surely persist in future years.

Food Security under Sustainable Development and Natural Resources

• Implications of sustainability: the need to produce more food and bio-energy under scarce basic resources – water, land and fertilizer.

• “Doing more with less” or what can be termed “efficiency-driven approach”.

• The City of Tshwane adopted 6 of the 8 efficiency areas (Neves, 2012), informing most of its agricultural programmes.

Efficiency-Driven Approach in Agricultural Value Chain

Efficiency driven

approach

Land use management

Plant productio

n

Animal productio

n

Risk

Diffusion &

knowledge transfer

Storage

Tshwane Agriculture in 2012

Currently, the city implements the following programmes & activities:

• Sustainable Agricultural Villages

• Household Food Security and Poverty Alleviation

• Training and Capacity Building

• Mechanisation/ tractor service

• Agricultural land preservation

• Food bank

Tshwane Agriculture Vision 2055

“A City that supports and promotes Sustainable Agricultural practices with the aim of providing food and

improving food security, eradicating hunger while conserving land, water and the environment”.

Paradigm shift/ game-changing

Medium-term intervention 2012 to 2022:

• Sustainable agriculture aimed at unlocking the full potential of land, human and financial resources that can be used for agriculture while ensuring responsible exploitation and utilisation of resources.

Paradigm shift/ game-changing Cont.Long term interventions 2023 to 2055:• Sustainable utilization & management of land, water and the environment

through establishment of Sustainable Agricultural Villages in all regions of Tshwane.

• Creating commodity cooperatives for small-holder farmers and supporting initiatives throughout the value chains to promote inclusive economy and growth.

• Establishing an agricultural extension college where all farmers will be given on-site or practical training on agricultural value chain from primary to tertiary production.

• Maximising the use of open spaces in the city.

Vision 2055

Have your say...

What are your views on enhancing food security in the City in view of population growth?