Limpopo Province, one of the nine provinces of the Republic of South Africa, covers an area of
12.46 million hectares, which accounts for 10.2% of the total land area of the country. The province
is known as one of the country’s agricultural regions, producing fruit and vegetables. Agricultural
activities in the region are characterised by dualism, with mainly white farmers involved in
commercial farming and black farmers mainly involved in small-scale and subsistence farming. The
majority of small-scale farmers are located in the former homeland areas, which cover
approximately 30% of the provincial land area.
Vhembe District Municipality is located in the far north of Limpopo Province. The Vhembe region
shares borders with three African countries (Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Botswana), and this has
exposed the area to the political instability in Zimbabwe (Vhembe District Municipality, 2013). The
district municipality is designated as a category C municipality, and it was established in 2000 in
terms of the Local Government: Municipal Structures Act, No. 117 of 1998. The district municipality
has the authority to do integrated development planning for the district as a whole, including
devising a framework for integrated development plans for all local municipalities within the
jurisdiction of the district municipality (Vhembe District Municipality, 2013).
The land in the Vhembe region is very fertile and is considered to be very suitable for agriculture;
hence, agriculture is one of the most common income-generating activities in the region. Given the
remote location of the area, it is difficult for agricultural produce to reach the national markets of
South Africa. Another big challenge for agriculture in the region is the drought conditions prevalent
in Limpopo Province. The worst affected areas are the whole of the Mopani district, Musina and
Mutale municipalities in the Vhembe district, Lephalale and Magalakwena municipalities in the
Waterberg district, Blouberg and Lepelle Nkumpi municipalities in the Capricorn district, and
Fetakgomo and Makhuduthamaga municipalities in the Sekhukhune district. In anticipation of the
drought conditions, the Department of Agriculture of the provincial government of Limpopo spent
an amount of R24 million in the financial year of 2008/09 to implement livestock water
infrastructure in all five districts. In the financial year of 2009/10, by December 2009, the
department had already spent R5 million and requested a further R38 million from the National
Treasury to assist drought-affected farmers in the province (South African Government, 2009).
Limpopo Province is a relatively dry area, with an average rainfall of 400 mm per annum. Water
scarcity is not limited to Limpopo Province, however; this problem affects the entire country in
varying degrees. The demand for water is constantly increasing, and there is strong competition for
water between agriculture and other sectors of the economy. Given the ever-increasing demand
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for water and the decrease in rainfall and water levels, new technologies will have to be developed
that will assist in saving water or agriculture will have to adopt irrigation efficiency approaches.
South Africa has come a long way since the onset of the democratic dispensation in 1994. Some
progress has been made in the efforts to reduce poverty. The National Income Dynamics Study
revealed that the rural share of poverty had decreased from 70% in 1993 to 57% in 2008. This
improvement is, however, due to the increase in social grant expenditure and the increased
migration of people from rural to urban areas to seek employment (National Development Plan,
2013).
Among the factors that serve as motivation for the focus on the rural non-farm economy is the
water deficit problem that South Africa faces. Southern Africa is the second region in the world to
be confronted by a debilitating water deficit. Within the region, South Africa stands out as one of
the most water-scarce countries. The country is also characterised by extremely variable rainfall,
both geographically and over time. In the 12% of the country that is suitable for production of rainfed
crops, productivity tracks rainfall, making farming a challenging business (World Wide Fund for
Nature, 2010).
Water availability is the single most important factor that limits agricultural production in South
Africa. Furthermore, the situation is likely to become dire due to rapidly increasing demand from
other sectors of the economy and climate change (World Wide Fund for Nature, 2010).
The role that agriculture currently plays in creating rural employment cannot be discounted; hence,
the argument is about building the rural non-farm economy not as a replacement for the farm
economy. Agriculture as a labour-intensive industry has been able to create jobs, thereby
contributing to the reduction of rural poverty. There has, however, been a decline in employment in
the farming sector due to the increase in commercial farming as farms have become larger and
more mechanised. According to the 2008 agricultural statistics, the total number of farm employees
has dropped from 1.6 million in 1971 to 628 000 in 2005. Given the population increase over that
time, the contribution of agriculture to employment dropped from 8.3% to 1.3% in relative terms
(Statistics South Africa, 2008).
Given all these challenges facing agricultural activities in Limpopo Province, particularly the
Vhembe region, the majority of poor people are still engaged in small-scale subsistence farming.
They are unable to enter commercial farming given the barriers to entry that exist. Apart from
climatic challenges, small-scale farmers have to deal with their inability to introduce mechanisation
to improve production. They still engage in a primitive way of farming that is labour intensive and
likely to yield fewer products given the number of people involved. Agriculture thus becomes a less
lucrative form of employment because there are a high number of farm labourers who have to be
paid.