Voorsitter, eerstens, my gelukwense aan minister Tina Joemat-Pettersson met haar aanstelling. Ek glo sy is die regte persoon, op die regte tyd en op die regte plek. Baie sterkte en baie sukses. Ook aan adjunkminister Pieter Mulder wil ek s dat ek aan sy patriotisme glo. Ek is oortuig dat hy in elk geval ook die landbou gaan dien.
Ek wil vir hom s dat 'n oom van Namakwaland my gebel en ges het dat ek die Minister moet s om van sy voertuig ontslae te raak. Hy het verduidelik dat daardie voertuig waarmee hy ry, elke nag van drie tot sewe breek en dat die Minister dan nie 'n oog sal kan toemaak nie. Ek wil net vir hom s, baie sterkte en voorspoed. Ek sal hoofsaaklik fokus op program 4 van die begroting, wat handel oor ekonomiese groei, nasionale en internasionale handel en markte. Uit die aard van die saak sal die sukses van hierdie program grootliks afhang van die implementering van ander begrotingsprogramme in die totale landboubegroting. (Translation of Afrikaans paragraphs follows.)
[Mr J P GELDERBLOM: Chairperson, firstly, I would like to congratulate Minister Tina Joemat-Pettersson on her appointment. I believe that she is the right person, at the right time and at the right place. I wish her the best of luck and much success. To the Deputy Minister, Pieter Mulder, I would like to say that I believe in his patriotism. I am convinced that he will serve agriculture well.
I would also like to convey to him that an elderly man from Namaqualand phoned and asked me to tell the Minister to get rid of his motor vehicle. He explained that this vehicle driven by him, breaks down between 03:00 and 07:00 every night and that the Minister would then not be able to shut an eye. I want to wish him good luck and much success.
I will mainly be focusing on Programme 4 of the budget, which deals with economic growth, national and international trade and markets. Naturally, the success of this programme depends mainly on the implementation of other budget programmes in the overall Agriculture Budget.]
In this budget it is clear that government is serious about our national and international agricultural markets. And the reason, therefore, is that market access for agricultural products is an important catalyst for job creation and foreign capital, and it ensures economic growth and food security.
Agtermiddag het die Minister ook daarna verwys toe sy ges het sy steun die platteland baie sterk, sy voel baie sterk oor navorsing en sy is ook sterk ten gunste van die mentorskap. Ek dink dis 'n baie duidelike boodskap wat sy agtermiddag uitgestuur het oor hoe sy voel oor landbou, en dit sal ons ook baie help, spesifiek in hierdie program 4. (Translation of Afrikaans paragraph follows.)
[Earlier this afternoon the Minister referred to it when she said that she firmly supports the rural areas, that she feels strongly about research, and that she is highly in favour of mentorship. I think she sent out a very clear message this afternoon with regard to her feeling towards agriculture, and this will help us a lot, specifically in Programme 4.]
Our trade, domestic and international, depends on food production by our farmers, on the sale of products to national and international markets and on ensuring that there is a sufficient amount of food produced for domestic and international demands.
I am glad that this budget addresses the challenges to secure sustainable market access. This can only be achieved if the quality of our food products is of outstanding value, if the input cost of the products can be lowered, if our food product prices are competitive with those of international products, if there are reliable buying partners, and if research of food products is done on an internationally acceptable basis.
The outcome of research from research units and the transfer of this information to our farmers are of paramount importance. This will enable farmers and agricultural businesses to compete with quality products in a challenging world. In this budget there is a focus on programmes to make farming more business oriented.
Ek verwelkom dit. [I welcome this.]
In these programmes the challenge is to listen to the inputs made by agricultural experts in the marketing of products and to farmers with practical agricultural expertise.
I am glad to say that the different stakeholders in agriculture are already working together with the National Agricultural Marketing Council. The outcome over the past two years of this co-operation has been very positive, but there are still many challenges to be addressed. These partnerships need to be strengthened, and within the partnerships we need to collaborate through debate and constructive inputs to enable agriculture in South Africa to improve its international competitiveness.
Met ons uitdaging om landbou weer 'n netto uitvoerder van landbouprodukte te maak, benodig ons sterk en rigtinggewende vennootskappe. Ons sal moet sterk standpunt inneem oor die ooreenkomste van die Departement van Landbou, Bosbou en Visserye. Verblydend is dit dat in die begroting duidelik uitgespel word dat ons hulp wil verleen aan ons uitvoerders met die oogmerk om handel binnelands en buitelands sterker en duidelik te bevorder.
In hierdie ontwikkeling moet ons meer van plaaslike landboukundiges gebruik maak wanneer dit by onderhandeling met internasionale rolspelers kom en wanneer vennootskappe gesluit word. Ons het baie kundiges op die praktiese landbougebied. Ek dink hulle insette is belangrik vir ons vir die pad vorentoe.
Die internasionale handel sal hom grootliks laat lei deur die kwaliteit van die produkte wat ons gaan voorsien. Daar is nie 'n alternatief vir 'n kwaliteit landbouproduk nie. Daarom, 'n ernstige versoek dat meer fondse bewillig word vir volgehoue landbounavorsing. Dit is ons antwoord op 'n dalende ekonomiese mark, plaaslik en internasionaal.
In die proses om Suid-Afrika se landbouprodukte op die internasionale mark suksesvol te bemark, is dit ook wenslik dat ons ons nuwe opkomende boere vertroud moet maak met die rels en die vereistes van die internsionale handel. (Translation of Afrikaans paragraphs follows.)
[Faced with the challenge of restoring South Africa to a nett exporter of agricultural products, we need firm partnership directives. We need to take a strong stance with regard to the agreements of the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. It is heartening to see that it is stipulated in the budget that we want to lend support to local exporters with the aim to strengthen and distinctly promote local and foreign trade.
In this development, we should utilise local agricultural experts more when it comes to negotiations with international role-players and when partnerships are formed. We have many experts in the practical area of agriculture. Looking ahead, I believe their input will be very valuable to us.
The international trade will, to a large extent, be guided by the quality of the products that we will provide. There is no alternative for an agricultural product of high quality. Thus, we urgently request that more funds be made available for sustained agricultural research. This is our answer to a spiralling economic market, locally and internationally. In the process of successfully marketing South Africa's agricultural products on the international market, it is also desirable that we familiarise our emerging farmers with the rules of international trade and its requirements.]
Market access needs partnerships between exporting farmers and emerging farmers. It is important to assist our emerging sector to commercialise their production entities and secure sustainable market access.
Mentorskappe, en u het reeds daarna verwys, is van kardinale belang in die toekomstige uitbreiding van handel om die internasionale mark te betree. Daar sal ernstig gedink moet word in hoe 'n mate begrotings aangepas moet word in die program om mentorskappe finansieel op 'n aanvaarbare wyse te ondersteun. Ek is baie bly oor daardie mentorskappe wat onlangs reeds gesluit is.
In hierdie begrotingsprogramme sal daar egter ook gelet moet word op alternatiewe metodes van bemarking van landbouprodukte. In di verband bepleit ek groter sinergie tussen staatsdepartemente en die Departement van Landbou, Bosbou en Visserye. Ek het verlede jaar die voorreg gehad om China en Indi te besoek, en dis vir my baie duidelik dat daar 'n totale gebrek is aan landbouprodukte van Suid-Afrika op die rakke daar. Dit is vir my noodsaaklik dat hier baie groter samewerking moet kom tussen die Departement van Landbou, Bosbou en Visserye en die Departement van Handel en Nywerheid. Ekonomiese groei vereis volgehoue en doelgerigte opleiding van die landbouers. Bestaande landbouers en nuwe toetreders beskik nie altyd oor die nodige bemarkingsvaardighede of ontwikkelingsvaardighede in die bemarking van hulle landbouprodukte nie.
Die Agri-seta is veronderstel om hier 'n rol te speel. Gebrek aan praktykvaardigheid by opleidingsvoorsieners blyk 'n bekommernis te wees. (Translation of Afrikaans paragraphs follows.)
[Mentorships, and you have referred to this already, are crucial in the development of future trade opportunities, with the goal of entering the international market. Serious thought should be given to the extent to which the budget should be adapted in the programme in order to support mentorships in a financially acceptable manner. I am very pleased with those mentorships that have already been formed recently.
In these budget programmes attention should, however, also be paid to alternative methods of promoting agricultural products. In this regard, I plead for greater synergy between government departments and the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. Last year I had the privilege of visiting China and India, and it is very clear to me that there is a total lack of South African agricultural products on those countries' shelves. To me, it is a necessity that there be greater co-operation between the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries and the Department of Trade and Industry. Economic growth requires the sustained and purposeful training of farmers. Existing farmers and new entrants do not always have the necessary marketing or developing skills to promote their own agricultural products.
The Agri-seta is supposed to play a role here. Those who provide training seem to lack practical proficiency, and this is a concern.]
There are still training providers registered with the Agricultural Sector Education and Training Authority without in-house expertise to conduct training, and there are still service providers without proper training material. Everything is based on outsourcing.
My problem with that is how we can secure and monitor quality. How can we improve the competitiveness of the agricultural sector if there is a crucial lack of skills development and various quality systems of service- provider priorities are lacking? How effective was the learnership programme of the Agri-SETA in the past four years? How many of these learners are currently in a full-time position in the agricultural sector? How many agricultural entrepreneurs were developed through this in-service training?
Isn't it time we sat around the table and looked at an apprenticeship programme in which competent agricultural employees were developed around a product-specific value chain? Not only could employees be developed, but existing and new agri-entrepreneurs could be developed in a supportive environment. Through this, we could address more black entrepreneurs, more trade - national and international - higher production and more access to agricultural services.
Die opleiding van opleiers en kundiges se deurgee van kennis aan nuwe toetreders tot die landbou bly belangrik. Die Suid-Afrikaanse Landbou- akademie is 'n Seta, sektorale onderwys- en opleidingsowerheid, 'n geakkrediteerde opleidingsvoorsiener met opleidingsfasiliteite, opleiers en kundiges wat sterk fokus op bemarking van Suid-Afrika se produkte. In Nederland is hulle baie betrokke betreffende regverdige handel. Hulle is ook in Duitsland betrokke met bessiepoeier. Hulle is spesifiek daarop ingestel om Suid-Afrika se produkte van opkomende boere in die buiteland te bemark deur middel van daardie instellings.
Ek is oortuig dat die globale finansile resessie 'n baie groot invloed op Suid-Afrika se landbou gehad het. Ek is oortuig dat daar hoop is vir landbou en dat landbou in die regte hande is. Ek is oortuig dat hierdie regering daarop ingestel is om toe te sien dat kommersile boere, opkomende boere en landbou hul regmatige plek sal verdien wat hul toekom. Baie dankie. [Tyd verstreke.] [Applous.] (Translation of Afrikaans paragraphs follows.)
[The training of trainers and the sharing of knowledge by experts with new entrants into the field of agriculture remains important. The South African Agri Academy is a Seta, Sector Education Training Authority, an accredited training provider with training facilities, trainers and experts, that focuses strongly on the marketing of South African products. In the Netherlands, it is heavily involved in fair trade practices. It is also involved with berry powder in Germany. Through these institutions, it focuses specifically on marketing South African products, grown by emerging farmers, abroad.
I am convinced that the global recession has had a huge impact on South Africa's agriculture. I am convinced that agriculture has been placed in safe hands and that there is, indeed, hope for agriculture. I am convinced that this government is committed to ensuring that commercial and emerging farmers, as well as agriculture, will take the places they rightfully deserve. Thank you very much. [Time expired.] [Applause.]]