By Maphiri Zwi, Matsobane Manaka and Maphari Machaka
MEC responsible for Limpopo Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (LDARD), Thabo Mokone has embarked on a massive community outreach programme while handing out Food Security Production Inputs to subsistence and smallholder farmers in a bid to capacitate them to expand their production. The packages range from fertilisers, animal feeds, seeds and garden tools.
Almost 800 agricultural community have benefited thus far. Beneficiaries are from Lenyenye and N’wamitwa villages, Sebone Primary School in Mokgoloboto village and Tivumbeni College in Greater Tzaneen Municipality in Mopani District and Towoomba in BelaBela, Waterberg District on 16 and18 April 2024, respectively.
The move of taking his outreach programme to agricultural communities is part of MEC’s evangelism ideology to make agriculture fashionable.
While handing out the tools of trade, Mokone said, “We are here as the Department of Agriculture, Provincially and Nationally, giving out tools of trade for subsistence farmers and some farmers. The idea is to guarantee food security to our people. As a caring government, we are making sure that the issue of backyard gardens is taking shape so that our people should understand that we are not leaving everybody behind.
“The government is hard at work to make sure that our people participate in the sector of the economy, which is agriculture. As you know agriculture plays a very important role in the economy of our Province.
“We have identified almost 800 beneficiaries in Mopani and Waterberg Districts. Throughout the month, we are giving them out these tools of trade. And we hope that our people will use these tools of trade for their own benefits to make sure that they produce food that they can also sell to the community,”.
