The Democratic Alliance (DA) has requested the Northern Cape Department of Agriculture for a full report on the collapse of the Emthanjeni Hydroponics Cooperative.
This comes after an oversight inspection to the site of the cooperative revealed stripped, barren tunnels and the shell of a building, signalling another failed Northern Cape land reform project. The DA’s oversight followed reports that equipment, implements, zincs and poles were being carried away from the project site.
The project, established on municipal commonage land, has been on-again-off-again for over a decade.
In 2013, it was reported that the project had 10 beneficiaries and had created 21 jobs. The Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development spent about R13 million for the construction of the 50 x 20m hydroponics tunnel, the installation of a solar screen, a back-up generator, a packaging facility, a cooler truck, office space, mentorship programmes, labour and production inputs. By that time, the project had also received a letter of intent from a big company, wanting to do business.
The project, targeted at producing cherry, plum and cocktail tomatoes, was ceremoniously launched by former MEC of Agriculture, Norman Shushu in March 2014. In 2018, it was reported that the project was one of the province’s top five hydroponics enterprises and that the Department of Agriculture’s R18 million investment through the construction of the tunnels, pack-house and office facilities was set to unlock an expanded client base.
It is uncertain what happened in the last five years. The DA has requested a breakdown of total government investment into this project since its inception and a full analysis of why this project collapsed.
At a time when unemployment is rife and poverty so widespread, we cannot accept that millions of rands get pumped into land reform projects, only for the projects to fall flat, causing jobs losses and wasting limited resources. The ANC government should not be let off the hook for land reform failures such as this one.
It is time to rescue the Northern Cape from poverty and inequality aggravated by failed land reform projects. The DA is fully committed to redressing the injustices of the past through land reform in a way that truly empowers emerging farmers and strengthens the economy.