By Jacomien de Klerk
THE need to invest in the growth, sustainability and innovation of South African agriculture has never been more critical. Often a focus is placed on infrastructure and production investment – for instance, in roads, rail, ports, farm-level innovation and technological advances – and while these investments are indeed important, we sometimes fail to acknowledge the immense significance of developing high-level agricultural skills and industry-specific knowledge.
The truth is that without intellectual capital there can be no sustainable growth in agriculture.
The growth potential of the South African citrus industry is immense. The industry already provides employment to more than 140 000 South Africans on farm level and generates R30 billion in revenue annually. It is also a significant player internationally, being the second-largest exporter of citrus, after Spain.
The industry exported 165 million 15kg-equivalent cartons of citrus last year and the Citrus Growers’ Association of Southern Africa (CGA) hopes to increase this to 260 million cartons by 2032 if all role-players work together. If the CGA is able to achieve this goal, it will lead to the creation of a further 100 000 jobs and an additional R20bn in revenue.
Achieving this vision depends on several factors, from adequate logistics to expanded markets for our citrus, but an overriding necessity and a true driver for change remains knowledge: skills, expertise, research, the ability to innovate and adapt are factors as essential to agricultural success as the weather or the soil.
Investment in knowledge remains a sure strategy to develop an industry. Bigger and broader support of bursary schemes, such as those offered by the Citrus Academy, is needed.
The Citrus Academy was founded by the CGA in 2005 as a not-for-profit venture to ensure that the high demand for educated and skilled individuals could be addressed. Through the Academy's shorter and longer courses, its development of training materials, an e-learning platform, and many other initiatives such as a job-seekers’ platform and work readiness programmes, it has empowered many.
The Academy has awarded R30 million in scholarships and bursaries and plans to support students to the value of more than R2.5m in 2024.
There is a significant focus on postgraduate studies, from diplomas and honours degrees to PhDs.
The Citrus Academy Bursary Fund enables support for postgraduate studies, for which there is a lack of alternative funding sources in South Africa.
The National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) aims to fulfil the important educational need for graduate qualifications, but it is initiatives such as the Citrus Academy Bursary Fund that fulfil the need for sector-specific postgraduate expertise.
Any person studying at a registered tertiary education institution in a field related to citrus production or research can apply for a bursary. These bursaries are often awarded in areas where there are scarce skills gaps in the industry – ranging from production to agriscience to management and other business fields.
Dr Xolani Sibosa, currently in the Directorate of Plant Genetic Resources in the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development, completed his postgraduate studies in horticultural science with the assistance of the Citrus Academy. His academic and subsequent research included work on citrus chilling injury.
As citrus is exported under cold conditions, this may lead to physiological changes in the fruit, which can lead to fruit deterioration and rejections at the export destination, resulting in economic losses for growers. Dr Sibosa saw this opportunity for him to come up with possible solutions.
Many Citrus Academy Bursary Fund students work with researchers of Citrus Research International (CRI), the subsidiary of the CGA, responsible for applied research and technology transfer. This has ranged in the past from working on using viruses to control pest insects to the study of fruit production under shade netting.
The Citrus Academy Bursary Fund has a strong focus on advancing transformation in the industry, and gives students from disadvantaged backgrounds the opportunity not only to study in fields relevant to citrus, but also to build careers in the industry.
In fact, of those who have been supported by the academy and have finished their studies, almost 40% are still employed in the citrus industry, with the bulk of other scholarship holders employed in other agricultural fields, government and academia.
These skills never truly leave the citrus industry. Dr Sibosa, for example, now works with evaluating new citrus varieties, including distinctness, uniformity and stability (DUS) trials.
“This is interesting because I have the privilege of working closely with different citrus breeders and scientists in the country,” he says.
This is echoed by another Citrus Academy Bursary Fund graduate, Ncediswa Mbekela, currently a quality manager in the industry.
“The citrus industry is challenging and forever evolving in terms of the requirements of the market, in terms of new variety developments and the new challenges that we experience from season to season.
“This for me is exciting because it means that I get an opportunity to learn, adapt, and evolve with the industry,” says Mbekela.
She is now furthering her studies towards an MBA at the Nelson Mandela University with the help of another Citrus Academy bursary.
Addressing specific skills gaps also allows the industry to reach its transformational goals. The CGA’s stated aim is to have black-owned farms contribute at least 50 million 15kg-equivalent cartons to its 2032 goal of 260 million cartons .
The Citrus Academy Bursary Fund assists black-owned citrus enterprises in developing their internal capacity. It is done by providing financial support to persons related to the enterprise to access quality formal tertiary education.
If we, as the South African agricultural sector, neglect to invest in knowledge, we will pay a price as steep as if we were to neglect investing in production or transport.
It is the intention of the Citrus Academy to grow its Bursary Fund, even though serious funding pressures are being felt in the current economic climate and due to a lack of support from funding agencies such as the AgriSETA.
Just as the citrus industry needs trees, water, market access and better logistics, it also needs talent and expertise to realise its massive growth potential.
Jacomien de Klerk is the general manager of the Citrus Academy.
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