Staff Reporter
Free State farmers battling for land over the years are expected to benefit when the government releases parcels of state land across the province for leasing in the coming months.
Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development Minister Thoko Didiza announced on Wednesday that the government will be releasing 8 333 hectares of farmland in the province as part of a countrywide initiative.
Didiza said this when she outlined the process to be followed by those interested in leasing state land.
She said in the coming two weeks, the government will advertise the 896 farms measuring 700 000 hectares of underutilised or vacant state land in seven provinces.
“The advertisement notices will be in the local, district and provincial newspapers, websites and local radio stations,” said Didiza.
“Application forms will be made available in the district offices and provincial offices of the Departments of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development as well as municipal district offices,” she added.
All applicants will undergo screening and interviews to determine their suitability.
Both the successful and unsuccessful applicants will be informed of the outcome in writing within a period of about three weeks.
The leases will be 30 years long with an option to buy.
In the Eastern Cape, at least 43 000 hectares of land will be available for leasing while KwaZulu-Natal will have 3 684 hectares; Limpopo 121 567 hectares; Mpumalanga 40 206 hectares; the Northern Cape 12 224 hectares; and the North West 300 000 hectares.
No land will be available for leasing in Gauteng and the Western Cape.
All beneficiaries allocated state land and signed lease agreements will be subjected to a compulsory training programme.
The training programme will include entry-level training on the commodity of their choice, basic record keeping and basic financial management as well as enterprise development.
Since February, the government has released 135 117 hectares of land to 275 farmers nationally.
In the Free State, only 501 hectares have been allocated.
Meanwhile, Tankisi Masiteng has been appointed the head of the Free State Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.
Agriculture MEC William Bulwane made the announcement on Thursday and said Masiteng, an agriculturist by profession, comes with extensive experience in the public sector as the department focuses on strengthening governance.
Before his appointment, which is effective from October 1, Masiteng was the acting head of the department.