Chairperson, I am thankful that I still have the privilege to be here and address this House.
When comparing the hon Minister Joemat-Pettersson's budget speech on Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries to the Western Cape's budget speech on agriculture and rural development, one cannot help but notice the many similarities and correlations between the two presentations. The hon Minister Joemat-Pettersson said that the national department will broaden and strengthen our partnership with organised agriculture and those components that still need to be organised.
Since the Western Cape contributes a significant 20,8% to the national agricultural output, this is a welcome message for organised agriculture in the Western Cape.
Hon Minister Van Rensburg - that's the provincial Minister for Agriculture - said agriculture should be a profitable occupation. His statement, together with the national Minister's hand of friendship towards commercial agriculture, bodes well for the future of agriculture in South Africa.
The hon Minister spoke of agrarian transformation, and the drive to consolidate all the national funding schemes. She included black economic empowerment in agriculture, AgriBEE, the Comprehensive Agricultural Support Programme, Casp, Ilima-Letsema and Land Care programmes in this regard. This is good news, as a consolidated approach could curb the co-ordination problems that are sometimes experienced when communication is lacking between individual funding schemes.
The Western Cape is eager to work together with the national department in this regard. The Western Cape Department of Agriculture has allocated 28% of its total budget towards the support and development of new farmers.
Minister Joemat-Pettersson mentioned the Comprehensive Rural Development Programme that is aimed at enabling rural people to play a meaningful role in an inclusive economy, thus dealing with rural poverty. The Western Cape has added rural development to the Ministry of Agriculture, as it believes that agriculture can play a significant role in the development of our rural areas.
Minister Joemat-Pettersson highlighted the need for young people to be attracted to the agricultural sector, and envisaged a national youth service for agriculture. The Western Cape Department of Agriculture is equally committed to attracting young talent to this sector, and Minister van Rensburg said in his provincial budget speech that, and I quote:
Landbou benodig dringend talent om die uitdagings wat voedselproduksie in die o staar, aan te pak. [Agriculture urgently needs talented individuals to tackle the challenges around food production which are staring us in the face.]
The national department's mandate now also includes fisheries. The Western Cape already has a strategic aquaculture plan, which is supported by civil society, business, labour and government. In this regard, we, as a province, are looking forward to working together with the national department.
The national department plans to train 1 000 extension officers and recruit another 1 000 in the near future. This is excellent news for all farmers, and is another point mirrored in the Western Cape's budget, which aims to increase its extension officer corps to 119 well-trained officials.
It seems that the table is set for good co-operation between the National Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries on the one hand, and the Western Cape Department of Agriculture and Rural Development on the other hand. I thank you.