By Maile Matsimela
The Eastern Cape Department of Agriculture has unveiled an ambitious five-year community food production scheme called Ilima Lokulima set to run from 2025 to 2030. The initiative represents a significant step towards addressing food insecurity, unemployment and income inequality in the province.
Rooted in the ubuntu philosophy that “no one must go to bed hungry especially when there is an abundance of land to grow crops and rear livestock in our komesteads,” the project calls upon communities across the Eastern Cape to actively participate in increased food production efforts. The Department has extended an invitation to various stakeholders, including community development organisations, traditional councils, clinics, schools, NPOs, NGOs, CBOs and cooperatives to register their interest in collaboration in this vital initiative.
Ilima Lokulima will focus on multiple agricultural sectors, including grain production, vegetable cultivation, poultry farming, piggery operations and beekeeping initiatives. A key aspect of the programme involves the aggregation of household gardens and small-scale projects, with participants required to consolidate between 20 to 100 household gardens or projects within a 5km radius.
The project aims to scale up local food production to levels that enable proper storage, processing, packaging and marketing of surplus produce. By establishing community food hubs, the initiative intends to improve the province’s contribution to South Africa’s overall food and nutrition security objectives.
To qualify for participation:
Interested parties must be South African citizens or locally based organisations with an established presence in the Eastern Cape.
- Participants must demonstrate the ability to aggregate the required number of gardens or projects and show willingness to cooperate with the department’s technical support programmes.
- Experience in implementing similar projects will be considered advantageous.
- The department emphasises that participants should have the capacity to produce at scale sufficient for commercial activities beyond immediate consumption needs. This approach aims to create sustainable agricultural practices that can evolve into viable economic activities for communities.
The Ilima Lokulima scheme represents an intentional and deliberate effort to increase food production while simultaneously addressing child malnutrition and poverty. By leveraging collective skills, experience and resources, the department hopes to create a collaborative environment where agricultural knowledge and practices can flourish.
Interested parties have until 6 June 2025 to submit their documents to the nearest Eastern Cape Agriculture office. This initiative aligns with the province’s broader goals of achieving inclusive economic growth through agricultural development and food security.
The programme offers an opportunity for Eastern Cape communities to transform available land resources into productive agricultural spaces, potentially creating both food security and economic opportunities for participants. As the programme rolls out, it is expected to contribute significantly to reducing hunger and improving livelihoods across the province’s diverse communities.
