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South Africa has a large agricultural sector, and is a net exporter of farming products. There are almost a thousand agricultural cooperatives and agribusinesses throughout the country, and agricultural exports constitute eight per cent of South Africa's total exports for the past five years. The agricultural industry contributes to around 30% of formal employment, relatively low compared to other parts of Africa, as well as providing work for casual laborers and contributing towards around 2.6% of GDP for the nation. However, due to the aridity of the land, only 15% can be used for crop production. Although the commercial farming sector is relatively well developed, people in some rural areas still survive on subsistence farming. It is the eighth largest wine producer in the world, and the eleventh largest producer of sunflower seed. South Africa is a net exporter of agricultural products and foodstuffs, the largest number of exported items being sugar, grapes, citrus, nectarines, wine and deciduous fruit. The largest locally produced crop is maize, and it has been estimated that 9 million tons are produced every year, with 7.4 million tons being consumed. Livestock are also popular on South African farms, with the country producing 85% of all meat consumed. The dairy industry consists of around 4,300 milk producers providing employment for 60,000 farm workers and contributing to the livelihoods of around 40,000 others. In recent years, the agricultural sector has introduced several reforms, some of which are controversial, such as land reform and the deregulation of the market for agricultural products. Land reform has been criticized both by farmers' groups and by landless workers, the latter alleging that the pace of change has not been fast enough, and the former alleging racist treatment and expressing concerns that a similar situation to Robert Mugabe's land reform policy may develop, a fear exacerbated by comments made by the country's deputy president. The sector continues to face problems with increased foreign competition and crime being two of the major challenges for the industry. Crime against commercial farmers is often, although not always, racially motivated as many South African commercial farmers are white. The rural farmer population has shouldered a great increase in attacks and harassment and has suffered as many as 1,700 farm murders since the end of apartheid in 1994, and this has caused many commercial farmers to flee the countryside for the protection of the gated communities of the cities and that offered by other nations. The government has been accused of not devoting enough time and money to tackle the problem as opposed to other forms of violent crime, or simply inefficiency and incompetence. Another issue which continues to affect South African agriculture is environmental damage caused by misuse of the land. To reverse the damage caused by land mismanagement, the government have supported a scheme which promotes sustainable development and the use of natural resources. Discrimination in jobs and a high crime rate including farm murders has lead to an emigration of the White South African population to Europe and other Anglo-Saxon countries. This has lead to a great loss of intellectual talent for South Africa. |
South Africa Information: Inside
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