Agri SA welcomes the declaration of a state of disaster addressing the damage caused by floods in the Eastern Cape, Mpumalanga, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Free State, and North West. As farmers face untold damage to their produce, property and livelihoods, the declaration must be followed by the deployment of resources to provide relief to farmers and rebuild critical infrastructure damaged by the floods.
The announcement, made by Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Dr Nkosazana Zuma, follows a week of heavy rainfall with more rain expected this week. In addition to damaging private property, the floods have destroyed critical infrastructure. In parts of KwaZulu-Natal, where floods in 2022 had already caused significant damage, the result is catastrophic.
We urge Minister Dlamini-Zuma to put measures in place to ensure the deployment of relief funding in a transparent and accountable manner. We trust that the national disaster management centre (NDMC)and the Auditor-General’s office will play their role in this regard.
Agri SA will continue to monitor the situation and provide updates to members through our collaboration with the NDMC. We encourage farmers to complete the impact assessments provided by the respective provincial disaster management centres to account for the damages suffered due to inclement weather.
Source: RISK AND DISASTER MANAGER AT AGRI SA
