Failing ANC mismanagement causing job losses in the Agricultural Sector

28 January 2019

The Democratic Alliance Premier Candidate in the North West, Joe McGluwa, and the DA Constituency Head, Chris Hattingh, engaged with stakeholders in the Agricultural Sector in the Ventersdorp-area.

During some of the engagements, they were also joined by DA Team One South Africa Spokesperson for Immigration, Jacques Julius and DA Team One South Africa Spokesperson for Jobs, Geordin Hill-Lewis.

It is clear that the ANC is failing the Agri-business sector. The lack of management and the ability to put the infrastructure in place results in job losses.

The Agricultural stakeholders that we met with are reliant on the JB Marks Municipality to supply them with electricity, they do not get their electricity directly from Eskom and the municipality is failing them.

Rural towns, roads,  and infrastructure are dilapidated and the ANC simply doesn’t care about the state of areas that are crucial to the industry.

After consultation with stakeholders, the DA can again confirm that the amalgamation of Potchefstroom and Ventersdorp is one of the main reasons why service delivery is in a terrible state and in some cases non-existent.

Agri-businesses and producers do not have trust in the ANC to create an environment that is conducive to investment and grow their businesses. Some have indicated that they are even willing to pack up and leave the province and take their business elsewhere.

The supply of electricity remains one of the biggest challenges as they are reliant on electricity to conduct their day to day functions. Due to the high fuel prices, it is not viable nor profitable to farm with generators or diesel, it makes the input and production cost very high. Water supply is affected by the lack of sustainable power as they cannot pump water for their animals or pivots to water their crops.

During our engagements, the DA spoke to farmworkers who are also worried about the state of services, not only to their work but also to their houses. They lose shift hours due to unplanned electricity interruptions which results in a loss of income.

They also indicated that the owners of the businesses are doing everything in their power not to cut jobs.

The Agri-business owners that we met indicated that should they get a mandate to maintain electricity infrastructure and support they are willing to assist government to avoid problems with the electricity supply.

It is the responsibility of government to create a conducive environment for investments and businesses to thrive, by building infrastructure and delivering basic services to towns. The failures of the ANC to do so has direct implications on businesses which leads to job losses and further increasing unemployment.

In 2018 the DA-led Western Cape 75% of all jobs in South Africa by creating an environment that is conducive to investment, building and maintaining infrastructure so businesses can flourish.

The DA is the only part that has a good track record of service delivery, this is the change we want to bring to the North West to build One South Africa for All.

Issued by Joe McGluwa, DA North West Premier Candidate, 28 January 2019