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TRADE NEWS
On their way towards greatness : Senwes helps emerging farmers
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A NUMBER OF EMERGING FARMERS ARE BEING SUPPORTED BY THE SENWES DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME . BUT HOW DOES THE PROGRAM ACTUALLY WORK ?
Key account manager and agronomist at Senwes , Julias Ramohlabi , explains that there are different phases that emerging farmers go through during the programme .
Firstly there are ad hoc-farmers , emerging farmers who are currently in the Intensive Support Programme , and those who have graduated .
But let ’ s start at the beginning . What should the profile of the emerging farmer look like to actually be considered ? What are the criteria ?
THE CRITERIA THAT EMERGING FARMERS MUST COMPLY WITH ARE 1 . Firstly the emerging farmer must farm on a full-time basis
FEB / MAR 2017 • SENWES Scenario
with cash crops . 2 . They must have business acumen .
3 . In addition they must also have the necessary documents such as lease agreements and title deeds .
5 . It will also be beneficial if they have some sort of mechanisation equipment on the farm .
BEFORE THEY ARE ACCEPTED INTO THE PROGRAM , RESOURCE EVALUATION MUST BE DONE Resource evaluation , like soil classification , is done to determine the potential of soil on the farm , namely high , medium or marginal . It is followed by recommendations such as whether lime should be added , the type of crop the farmer should plant and cultivation practices , namely whether they should consider ploughing or ripping .
WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF THIS SUPPORT PROGRAMME FROM SENWES The farmers can get access to financial assistance through Senwes Credit . In addition they can also obtain technical advice through mentoring and a market
Two of the emerging farmers , Simon Tefo and Herbert Mabuza with agronomist and key account manager at Senwes , Julias Ramohlabi . is created for their product .
BASICALLY A ONE-STOP SHOP Julias is quite adamant that emerging farmers regard Senwes as their 24 / 7 One-stop Shop . There are a lot of benefits in being part of the programme , such as training and being exposed to a number of other segments in the world of agriculture . Senwes also enlightens the farmers about Safex , trading , putting them in contact with grain procurers , etc .
“ Most of the time we start from scratch .” And who better to take them through the steps than Julias . Julias has 10 years ’ experience at Senwes . He started in 2007 as a junior agronomist , progressed to the position of agronomist and in 2016 he was promoted to key account manager , which means that he manages the total portfolio of emerging farmers .
5-YEAR MENTORSHIP PROGRAM Julias explain that the farmers in the Intensive Support Programme go through intensive mentoring . He adds that he visits them at least once a week on their farms , even more often if needed . After the 5-year mentorship programme they graduate and receive a Certificate of Recognition .
Currently there are a few farmers in the programme , such as Herbert Mabuza and Wesley Monyatsi , to name just a few , on whom we have focused in previous editions of Senwes Scenario . These emerging farmers are spread around the Senwes area with a few in Vereeniging , Randfontein and
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