POLITICS

Over to you Minister Mboweni – Agri SA

Organisation looking forward to finance minister’s pronouncement on SOE’s and the Land Bank in particular

Over to you Minister Mboweni

26 October 2020

Following President Ramaphosa’s sketchy detail in his Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan, presented on October 15, focus now shifts to the Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement. It is due on Wednesday by the Minister of Finance Tito Mboweni.

AgriSA is particularly looking forward to the minister’s pronouncement on SOE’s, and the Land Bank in particular, a key institution for the agricultural sector. We have recommended that Treasury urgently considers supporting the Land Bank’s request of R18 billion over 5 years to ensure the bank’s sustainability.

“The increasing liquidity constraints of the Land Bank poses a risk to its ability to support the agricultural sector currently, as the Land Bank is financing 29% of the agricultural debt. This makes it a critical contributor to food security,” said Christo van der Rheede, executive director of Agri SA.

“As an institution, it is an important vehicle to finance new entrants into the sector. With no new clients being considered and clients being encouraged to seek financing from other financial institutions, the critical development role that the Land Bank needs to fulfil, is compromised”, said KulaniSiweya, agricultural economist at Agri SA.

We hope for boldness and clear timelines given the current economic climate from the Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement. Moreover, we hope for expeditious implementation thereof.

Issued by Christo van der Rheede, Agri SA Executive director, 26 August 2020