NECOFA South Africa country report

 

PRESENTED BY: PETER KOMANE

(OUTGOING COUNTRY CO-ORDINATOR)

 

ASSISTED BY: CONRAD MHLONGO

(CHAIRPERSON – NECOFA-SA)

 

 

Networks

 

 

 

 

GMO CAMPAIGNS

 

 

 

EAST AND SOUTHERN AFRICAN SMALL SCALE FARMERS FORUM (ESAFF)

 

 

SA. NATIONAL SMALL SCALE FARMERS FORUM

 

 

 

REGIONAL NETWORKS

PELUM

 

Strengthening East and Southern African Small Scale Farmers Fora

 

 

IFOAM AFRICA CENTRE

 

Strengthening National Organic Movement

Free membership

National Organic Producer Conference

 

 

African Biodiversity Network (ABN)

 

Strengthening indigenous seed security and capacity building

 

 

SMALL FARMERS FARMER SUPORT

 

Field visits have been taking place to projects in the Limpopo, Gauteng and North West Province to ascertain the conditions and motivate the farmers to promote organic farming and raise their concern around the negative impact of Genetically Modified Organisms.

 

 

ELANDSKRAAL SMALL SCALE FARMERS

 

30 small-scale farmers association in Limpopo. The department of Agriculture approaved funding to set install electric water pump, above and underground irrigation system.

CSIR (Centre for Scientific International Research) agreed to partner with NECOFA to assist the farmers to produce essential oils. The Department of Trade and Industries approved R2500 000-00 (about US $380 000-00) over two years for successful implementation of the project.

NECOFA-SA will facilitate organic farming; leadership and financial management while CSIR manage the production of essential oils (Nursery, planting seedling on 30 ha, extracting and marketing of oils)

 

 

NATIONAL OFFICE

 

Necofa has acquired a national office north of Johannesburg at CIDA PARK in Lyndhurst, a 6.5-hectare property owned by CIDA CITY Campus.

 

The office is composed of 7 offices with furniture acquired from People’s Agricultural Development, and a conference facility that caters for 30 people at a time.

 

 

INTERNS

 

The organisation CIDA CITY CAMPUS has a sustainability program called CIDA CORE with 10 trainees. These trainees are CIDA CITY CAMPUS graduates who are meant to succeed the current senior management of the organisation in time. Three of them are on an internship with Necofa and BOIWATCH to learn that aspect of community development skills. 

 

They participated at national and provincial workshops and also did several small-scale farmers associations. Their being in the network has added significant value as they assist with administration and also strengthening of the network.

 

They are also engaged in the African Leadership Development Program that is being supported by the Kellogg Foundation.

 

CIDA CITY CAMPUS has, together with the Sustainability Institute at the University of Stellenbosch in Cape Town, developed an honours program that is about organic farming and sustainable management of the ecosystem. At an appropriate time, the interns at Necofa will undertake a study on it.

 

 

NATIONAL ORGANIC DEMONSTRATION PLOT

 

Cida Park as a development centre has halls and rooms where training and workshops take place. A portion of the land has been allocated to Necofa to develop demonstration plots on, for trainees that comprise of students and the community in general 

 

 

CULTURAL PROMOTING

 

Tshimedzi moon and Tshilemela Stars Festival

 

 

FORWARD PLANS

  1. Protecting local food security and community rights
  2. Legalise Country Network
  3. Appoint professional staff members (Research, training, farmers support
  4. administrator)
  5. Organise National workshop for members 
  6. Registration: National – SADEC Food security Desk

 

 

CHALENGES

  1. Sourcing funding for National Office and Staff
  2. Recruiting Country Co-ordinator Programme co-ordinators
  3. Second Necofa-SA conference

 

 


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