CEDA has invested a total of P114 million on its partnership with the Mosisedi Commercial Farmers Association since 2014.
Speaking during the Mosisedi Harvest Day over the weekend, CEDA’s Chief Executive Officer, Thabo Thamane said that his organisation has donated P114 million in farms within the Mosisedi Cluster through 73 loans to 17 farmers.
“Through all the challenges that these farmers have been, their resilience has seen them paying back P45.7 million of the loaned money which translates to 40 % of the invested value.”
The CEDA boss added that through their repayment the farmers are aiding the Agency to revolve the fund and continue assisting them annually and also help other farmers in other parts of the country.
He also mentioned that CEDA’s investment in the area has further helped in the creation of over 200 permanent employees and up to 288casual labourers since the partnership. “Now considering an average of four members per family in this region, our investment has therefore supported close to 2000 people in this region.”
He however expressed concern over low rains in the area saying this has forced some farmers to stop ploughing while those that do continue to do so albeit at a lower scale and end up suffering huge losses. “Sadly there is nothing that can be done to improve weather conditions but there are some mitigation factors in place through insurance products.”
He said that government has created Agricultural Credit Guarantee Scheme (ACGS) which is meant to cushion farmers against the effects of drought and other environmental factors. “ACGS has assisted farmers consistently over the past six seasons and I continue to encourage them to subscribe to the scheme so that they benefit from it if things do not go according to plan.”
He said that as much as there are a lot of challenges in the sector, the gains can be equally good because after all people need to eat daily and therefore there is need for farmers to keep on producing.
He said that it is pleasing to see this year’s theme talking about attraction of future generations and that it shows that Mosisedi farmers are not about to give up. “They are continuing to fight for this country’s food security.”
He added that at CEDA they also pledge to continue standing by the farmers ensuring that they provide the necessary support, not just financial but also through technical support (mentoring) training, knowledge exchange, and monitoring.