Final Adopted IDP - KZN Development Planning

The Municipality developed a Local Economic Strategy for its service area in 2008 with
the assistance of Gijima Funding provided by the Zululand District Municipality;
however, this Strategy needs to be revised to bring it into line with current trends and
developments. Financial constraints mean that the Municipality will need to secure
funding in order for this review to take place. An LED Officer has been appointed by
the Municipality to coordinate the Municipality‟s engagement with this important sector.
Agriculture
Agriculture is a major sector within the Municipality and has the potential to contribute
to the development of employment opportunities as well as addressing matters related
to food security. The KZN Department of Agriculture has three primary programmes
that focus on the emerging farmer community within the Municipality. Large commercial
farms are located within the western part of the Municipality; these farmers require
limited assistance from the Department. Each ward in the Municipality has its own
farmers association representing the interests of the farmers, commercial and
emerging, in that ward.
Under the auspices of the Flagship Programme, the Department of Agriculture has
commenced implementation of the One Home, One Garden initiative with effect from
January 2011. The initiative is the responsibility of the extension officers employed by
the KZN Department of Agriculture; it is proposed to provide training to 700
participants per ward in the Municipality. Participants are identified by the extension
officers on the basis of need; each extension officer has a list of community gardens
including those located within the traditional authority areas. However, participation in
this initiative is not limited to existing community gardens; individuals are encouraged to
make an approach to the Department for assistance with a community garden. Part of
this initiative is to continue assisting local schools by providing them with a supply of
vegetable seeds. The extension officers employed by the KZN Department of
Agriculture will jointly capacitate participants in this initiative on a ward by ward basis,
commencing with those wards identified as being most deprived – Ward 1, Ward 2, Ward
15, Ward 16 and Ward 24.
The mechanisation programme implemented by the KZN Department of Agriculture
assists indigent and subsistence farmers with a tractor to plough their fields and
provides these farmers with maize and vegetable seeds. The Department sub-contracts
small operators to make their tractors available to assist – the cost of this initiative is
paid for by the Department. The provision of maize and vegetable seeds is sufficient to
plant between one and two hectares per individual farmer of between twenty and thirty
hectares per farmer group.
Protection of animals by the provision of veterinary health services is the third
programme operated by the KZN Department of Agriculture within the service area of
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