By Staff Reporter
Mpumalanga– The slow-paced allocation of farming land remains a major concern for emerging young female farmers in the Dipaleseng Local Municipality.
Two government-funded farming projects — Masiziba Goats Project and Ithuba GFG2007 — are bearing the brunt of having to keep livestock in a residential area.
This week, the Select Committee on Women, Youth, Children, and People with Disabilities, led by its chairperson Mr. Jackson Malatjie, found that these farmers are grappling with several challenges.
Increasing developmental projects and the construction of new homes in residential areas have significantly reduced available grazing space.
This puts additional pressure on government to fast-track land allocation to young farmers, whose ambitions include expanding into crop farming, Boer goat rearing, and cattle farming.
One of the more promising initiatives is Ithuba GFG2007, a cooperative registered in 2007 by a group of unemployed graduates from the Buhle Farmers Academy in Grootvlei.
Here’s what the municipality had to say about the project:
