SA agriculture sector's health is crucial: Hanekom

Deputy Minister of science and technology, Derek Hanekom, says agriculture is central to the government's plans to ensure food security and increase job opportunities, Business Day reports.

Addressing the Grain SA conference in the Free State town of Bothaville, Hanekom said it was crucial to keep the sector economically viable and sustainable; otherwise numbers of farmers would continue to decline. He added that agriculture development was a crucial part of the Government's plans to ensure food security and increase job opportunities.

Hanekom announced that the government set aside R4bn to assist smallholder farmers, as part of the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries' "Zero Hunger" initiative. The investment is aimed at developing small-scale emerging agriculture by giving preferential procurement status to smallholder farmers. According to Business Day, Hanekom said that -on average- every grain producer in South Africa provided food for more than 6000 people.

Read the full article on www.businessday.co.za.