How the Gauteng Department of Agriculture can help you achieve your farming goals!

The Gauteng Department of Agriculture and Rural Development invites all eligible people in the agriculture or agroprocessing sectors to submit their proposals for project funding.

The Gauteng Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (GDARD) invites members of the farming community in the province, including agricultural entrepreneurs, smallholders and commercial farmers, organised agriculture, agricultural co-operatives, and previously disadvantaged people, to submit their proposals to apply for funding or assistance for their relevant farming projects. Applications should be in line with the departmental commercialisation programme across different agricultural commodity value chains as follows: • Mechanisation (tractors, planters, ploughs, and combine harvesters, among others); • Production inputs;

• On- and off-farm infrastructure;

• Farmer training and capacity building; • Agroprocessing business development support; and • Marketing enterprise business development and trade.

criteria

Applicants must meet the following criteria:

• Be able to utilise provided infrastructure with or without production input assistance from government;

• Must have relevant documentation, for example a title deed (in the case of private landowners);

• Must be a land reform beneficiary, first-time land owner who would qualify as a land reform beneficiary, or must have acquired land through private means;

• Prior to receiving any assistance through conditional grants, the applicant must sign an agreement with GDARD;

• In the case of private landowners, he/she must not sell his/her property for at least 20 years, and must continue farming during and after this period; • The grant will be offered on a three-year basis on a sliding scale. Government cannot commit to any form of direct, recurrent, operational or maintenance project grant; • The disbursement amount per project will be predetermined by the value of the deliverable within the framework of the commodity and will be market-related, and informed by the assessment/ evaluation of the committee; • Priority will be given to projects that will generate employment opportunities; • Applications must be accompanied by certified copies of the applicant’s ID, proof of farm ownership/ lease agreement, and a short description of farm operations.

Applications are now available online at gauteng.gov. za, or can be obtained/returned to the following regional offices:

• Randfontein: L Phakedi, phone 011 411 4300;

• Germiston: S Maoba, phone 011 821 7700;

• Pretoria: A Maswikaneng, phone 012 316 1600, or 076 422 1998; • Head office: P Goda, phone

011 420 2730, or 072 287 9278.

• If you have any further enquires, phone M Tlape on 011 240 2730, or email mpho.tlape@gauteng.gov.za.

fw archive ABOVE: Applicants must be able to utilise the infrastructure or equipment that they may receive from the department.