Eastern Cape MEC for Agriculture, Nonceba Kontsiwe, is urging communities across the province to take an active role in food production as a tool to combat hunger and uplift local economies.
“In embracing ubuntu, no one must go to bed hungry, especially when there is an abundance of land to grow crops and rear livestock in our homesteads,” said Kontsiwe.
Her call comes as the Department of Agriculture opens the door for partnerships under the Ilima LokuLima Community Food Production Scheme. This ambitious initiative, set to run from 2025 to 2030, aims to ramp up food production at both household and community levels.
“Ilima is a clarion call to all communities in the Eastern Cape to get out of our comfort zones, dirty our hands and engage fully in increased food production to fight poverty, high unemployment and income inequality,” Kontsiwe said, emphasising the power of collective action.
With the application deadline set for 6 June 2025, the department is encouraging individuals and organisations with a passion for agriculture to come forward and be part of the province’s food security transformation.
Significant groundwork has already been laid. In the 2024/25 financial year, the ILIMA/LETSEMA programme, in collaboration with the national department, supported 30 000 households with production starter packs. An additional 12 000 households were assisted through the Presidential Employment Stimulus (PES) programme.
“It is a call to action for all those operating in the space of food production to join hands and leverage on each other’s skills, experience and resources. This is an intentional and deliberate effort to increase food production, fight child malnutrition and poverty,” said Kontsiwe.
The Ilima LokuLima programme targets the cultivation of grains and vegetables, as well as poultry farming, piggery, and beekeeping. Its approach is deeply rooted in community-driven development, with plans to consolidate between 20 and 100 household gardens or small-scale farming projects into larger, coordinated groups.
This aggregation model will allow communities to store, process, package, and sell surplus produce, ultimately establishing decentralised food hubs across the province and significantly strengthening local food and nutrition security.
Applications are open to South African citizens, locally based Community Development Organisations in the Eastern Cape, cooperatives, traditional councils, schools, clinics, non-profit organisations, non-governmental organisations, and community-based organisations. – SAnews.gov.za
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