SONA: Importance of agriculture celebrated, but timeous and effective implementation of policies lacking
13 February 2021
The president presented arguably his most important State of the Nation Address (SONA) owing to the unprecedented global Covid-19 pandemic, says Christo van der Rheede, executive director of Agri SA.
According to Agri SA the president outlined a four-point focused plan: defeating Covid-19, accelerating economic recovery, implementing economic reforms to create sustainable jobs and drive inclusive growth, as well as fighting corruption.
Three of these are not new and Agri SA has continued to reinforce that South Africa is not policy bankrupt but remains challenged by the timeous and effective implementation thereof.
Reflecting on some key aspects of the address, Agri SA has the following views:
In the midst of the economic damage caused by Covid-19, South Africa’s agricultural sector has performed remarkably well.
In 2020, we became the world’s second-largest exporter of citrus, with strong export growth in wine, maize, nuts, deciduous fruit and sugar cane.
Agri SA appreciates the recognition given for the sector; agriculture and the value chain remains a critical player as a contributor to the GDP and should receive further support.
We have now developed an infrastructure investment project pipeline worth R340 billion in network industries such as energy, water, transport and telecommunications. Agri SA welcomes infrastructure development that will benefit the farming community as well as industries in the value chain.