NEWS
A drive through a decaying Noupoort , as just one example , provides proof of the need for his vision .
Community and tourism
Ferreira says that , after 28 years , his own transformation from farming only to a sustainable farming , conservation and tourism enterprise is complete , citing the December visitor statistics for their 86-bed establishment : 1,650 people were accommodated from 10 December to 15 January , with most going on a night drive .
“ They are attracted by nature . We [ his family ] cannot leave as we carry a vision and people come for that vision .” As an avid birder , he says he has counted 225 species on his farm-cum-nature reserve .
Ferreira is well aware , however , of the importance of community buy-in to such a project – beyond nature and wildlife – from local ( often troubled ) municipalities to farmworkers .
To this end , he has engaged with municipalities and registered non-profit organisations ( NPOs ) to support his vision .
Through the Karoo Oasis Route , he says he can incorporate – in partnership with the Northern Cape Tourism Agency – what he refers to as “ 13 small , dead and bad towns around Hanover ” into a tourism route .
Through the Khoisan Karoo Nature and Community NPO , he wishes to start “ a central house of safety , a skills-training facility and a heritage hub for the lost San people of the Karoo ”.
He says he has had a meeting with social workers in the relevant areas “ to identify the cases to bring into the house of safety ”.
Being the owner of a successful tourism destination , Ferreira says he is now pursuing an integrated development plan to address what he calls “ the tourism killers ”, citing plastic-bag litter , street kids begging , no water and electricity as chief culprits .
“ To bring tourism in , we need to lift the whole town ,” he says .
It ’ s ambitious stuff
“ I ’ m just a cog in a big wheel ,” says the busy Ferreira , mentioning the rhinos he expects to be offloaded at his reserve in the next couple of weeks .
“ I will dedicate the next 10 years of my life to these three NPOs . They can change the 13 towns in my area .”
In an agricultural landscape dominated by news of farm attacks , and a national news environment dominated by an imploding and underperforming government , these developments in the large and quiet Karoo make for a happy project .
This story first appeared in our weekly Daily Maverick 168 newspaper which is available for R25 at Pick n Pay , Exclusive Books and airport bookstores . For your nearest stockist , please click
here .
Figure 10 . The Seekoei River runs through PC Ferreira ’ s Karoo Gariep Nature Reserve . ( Photo : Supplied )
41 Grassroots Vol 22 No 1 March 2022