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Date : 22/11/2003
Source: Department of Agriculture
Title: Didiza: Female Farmer of the Year awards ceremony


SPEECH BY THE MINISTER FOR AGRICULTURE AND LAND AFFAIRS, MS THOKO DIDIZA, AT THE FEMALE FARMER OF THE YEAR AWARDS CEREMONY, 22 November 2003

Honourable MECs
Honourable guests
Ladies and gentlemen

Women have always been in the forefront of the struggle for freedom and equality. From the drafting of the Freedom Charter in 1955 that declared that South Africa belongs to all who live in it, Black and White, to the women's petition against pass laws on the 9th of August 1956. Women have always fought united across colour lines with a common vision of preserving their right to freedom and equality.

Ten years later, on the eve of the first decade of democracy, women can be proud of their role in bringing about change and unity in our country. Through their brave participation as equal citizens of this country, South Africa has indeed become the beacon and reflection of true democracy.

This is reflected in the policies and programmes of Government aimed at reversing the historically discriminatory laws and societal norms and standards that prevented women from occupying their rightful positions in the agricultural, mining, financial and ICT sectors.

For example, the drafting of the Women's Charter for Effective Equality through the National Women's Coalition structures on 27 February 1994 created a voice, a platform and re-enforced women's determination to play an active role in our country's democracy as the preamble of the Women's Charter reads, and I quote:

"As women, citizens of South Africa, we are here to claim our rights. We want recognition and respect for the work we do in the home, in the workplace and in the community. We claim full and equal participation in the creation of a non-sexist, non-racist democratic society".

To our heroines present tonight, thank you for continuing the struggle for freedom and equality. You are a shining example of women's determination to succeed and a true embodiment of the Charter's declaration of the role of women in our democracy.

Having said this, ladies and gentlemen, the struggle for freedom and equality continues for women beyond equal participation. The struggle for women takes an even more challenging route of fighting poverty and underdevelopment, HIV/AIDS and women and children abuse. Again, these struggles touch at the very core of the rights of women in our country and demands strong action, not only from women, but also from all South Africans.

The white ribbons that you may have received tonight symbolise your support for the 16 Days of Activism for No Violence against Women and Children campaign, which starts next Tuesday. It is but one of the many struggles for women's rights and equality we have to gear ourselves towards if we are to enjoy the fruits of our democracy.

The question for all of us tonight then is how do we meet these challenges and create a better life for all not only as women, but also as citizens and government.

Our vision as the Department of Agriculture is that of a prosperous agricultural sector. Our goal is to bridge the sectoral gap that exist between the first economy in agriculture or the bulk producers of the country's wealth who are well integrated within the global economy, and the second economy characterised by a large percentage of the underdeveloped South Africans which include the poorest of our rural and urban poor. In short, it is a vision that embraces those who are structurally disconnected from both the first and the global economy.

It is Government's priority to ensure integration of the second economy into the first one and aims at closing the agriculture economy gap.

One of the key policies and strategies that the Department is working on to close this economic divide, is the AgriBEE strategy aimed at the transformation of industries within the agricultural sector to achieve the following:

* Ownership, control and active participation or management of agricultural operations;
* The development of entrepreneurial, management, technical/other skills;
* To benefit from skilled employment; and
* To participation in procurement chains.

The AgriBEE strategy will represent a systematic approach in achieving the above-mentioned points while uplifting the previously disadvantaged into mainstream agriculture. The successful implementation of this and other related policies rely on the partnerships between Government, the private sector, farmer's organisations and labour. This partnership has been demonstrated through the Female Farmer of the Year competition now in its fifth year.

The objective of this competition is to create awareness on the opportunities for employment, investment and growth in the sector. The Department will continue to pledge its support for the creating of new entrepreneurs who in turn can become future employers and successful businesswomen. For example: Ms Jean Davidson, who was our first overall winner in 1999 as well as Ms Ansoria Geldenhuys, winner of the 2001 competition, for instance, are currently on the Agricultural Research Council Board.

Ms Nomsa Nhlebeya, our 2001 Mpumalanga provincial winner, was invited to London this year to take part in a Women's Day Celebration organised by the South Africa High Commission in the United Kingdom as an ambassador for women in Agribusiness, while Ms Sabina Khoza, Gauteng winner in the category for the National Market in 2001, is currently the national secretary for the National African Farmers' Union.

We congratulate you and wish you well in your new endeavours. In further promoting diversity in leadership and skills, this year, an additional fourth category, namely "Top Household Producer" has been introduced to the existing three. This category recognises the contribution of women who produce food for their own households in the fight against hunger and poverty.

This is especially pertinent when looking at the huge challenge of food insecurity both in our country as well as our surrounding neighbours. This category is not only important from the aspect of winning but it is one of the most important categories in calling and mobilising women to lead the fight in pushing back the frontiers of poverty and to bring about development to their households and communities.

Such leadership will be nurtured and enhanced by participating in NAWACO (National Women in Agribusiness Cooperative Limited) where many previous winners of the competition serve this board. NAWACO's aim is to empower women in Agribusiness, to facilitate skills sharing, Marketing opportunities, Social Development and global competitiveness while ensuring that women in Agribusiness form an integral part of the institutional and technical resource of the organisation. By participating in this forum, women will continue to stimulate policy reforms and contribute towards creating an environment conducive for agricultural development.

The formation of women's co-operatives is equally an important area of information sharing and development. Various provinces, which have such organisations, can attest to the success and opportunities it has brought to the communities such as the Gauteng's Masisizane Women's Housing and Financial Services Co-operative with 250 members. This co-op is currently building houses as well as providing financial services to their members. By becoming involved in co-operatives, women can achieve in groups what the individuals cannot do on their own. It provides access to services and helps with the marketing, distribution and selling of farmers' produce.

The empowerment of women in the working environment is also essential within the Department of Agriculture. To demonstrate this commitment, 60 % of the top management in the Department is women. Women also make up a total 27 % of the senior managers, 35 % professional employees and a whopping 53 % of skilled workers.

In summary ladies and gentlemen, there is progress in women empowerment within the agriculture sector. However, we need to grow this commitment to include the entire value chain of the sector from the farm to fork as we face new challenges related to food safety, food labelling and the traceability of food products. We want to see women involved in other more lucrative areas of the agribusiness especially agro processing and home industries.

We have a responsibility to bring on board the youth and the children both at the primary and tertiary institutions. As they make the choices about their careers, we want them to recognise the potential of the agricultural sector as a career opportunity.

Today, each and every participant is a pioneer in reaching that goal for women.

I congratulate each and every one of you for your courage and determination to participate and hope you will continue to participate in agriculture outside this competition.

To the sponsors of this event, namely: Total SA, Land Bank, ABSA Agribusiness and Onderstepoort Biological Products, thank you for having the courage and the vision to invest in women in agriculture and I hope that you will continue to support them for many years to come.

I thank you

Source: Department of Agriculture (http://www.nda.agric.za)

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