Prudence Mokwena, who is currently farming on a 21ha farm in Jakkalsdans, Moloto, north of Pretoria, which she attained through a land reform programme from the Department of Agriculture, advocates for collaboration among farmers to reach greater heights.
By Maile Matsimela, Digital Editor at African Farming
The multi-award-winning farmer, who was recognised as one of the Sunday World Heroic Women in 2022 and 2024, and one of the DRUM Top 50 Inspiring Women in 2023, and who was a recent top five finalist in the prestigious Future Agri Perspectives Women’s Voice Competition, uses her platform to inspire the next generation while building a diversified agricultural enterprise under the RBKM brand.
African Farming interviewed her on the outskirts of the gala event that took place at Villa Arcadia on the Hollard campus in Parktown, Johannesburg, recently.
Mokwena, who hails from Winterveld, northwest of Pretoria, began her farming journey five years ago after a career frustration in her previous profession. “Yeah, I left the job for farming. I used to work as a microbiologist. I’ve worked about 12 years,” she says. Her decision to change careers was driven by limited advancement opportunities: “There was no promotion there. I had to even go back to school to study something different but still, there was no promotion.”
Her initial entry into farming came through family connections, where she started on a family-owned plot and later received funding from the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA). “One of my family members had a family plot acquired through land reform, but it wasn’t utilised. The plot had a fully equipped chicken house, so I just took advantage of it and started from there,” she recalls.
On the family farm, Mokwena scaled her operations significantly, growing from 1 000 to 1 200 chickens per cycle. However, her vision for building an independent legacy led her to apply for her own farm through the land reform programme, and she ultimately acquired the 21ha Jakkalsdans farm in Moloto.
When asked about her business, Mokwena describes her enterprise simply: “RBKM is the name of the farm… It’s the name of the business.” However, her operations extend far beyond basic poultry production.
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Diversification Strategy
At Jakkalsdans, Mokwena runs a diversified operation focusing on broiler chickens alongside vegetable production of spinach and cabbage. This diversification strategy serves as both a financial buffer and practical business philosophy. Her approach reflects her understanding that “when one commodity fails, the other can save you”, drawing from her experience of earning her first million not in poultry farming but in another sector.
Though the current farm has capacity to house 10 000 chickens, electricity challenges at the farm limit her production to 2 000 broilers per cycle, because her solar power setup is unable to handle higher volumes. She highlighted the ongoing challenge of managing production constraints while working to resolve the electricity issues.
Mokwena has developed strong relationships with urban township markets, including supplying shisanyamas in Soshanguve. Although she previously supplied formal markets such as Waltloo Meat & Chicken butchery in Soshanguve, she had to reduce these formal partnerships to adjust to her current production limitations.
Her expansion vision remains ambitious: “The way forward from here, I want to expand. I want to own my sales outlet where I’ll be selling my own branded products. And I want to take it back to the townships because that’s where the money is. That’s what I want.”
The comprehensive scope of her brand-building vision becomes clear when she outlines her plans: “I want to have RBKM butchery, RBKM restaurant, you know, everything RBKM.”
One of Mokwena’s most consistent messages concerns the financial requirements for successful farming. “One thing I can say to someone who wants to start farming is to have capital,” she advises bluntly.
Her experience managing infrastructure challenges and scaling operations has reinforced her understanding of ongoing capital needs. “At some point, you can’t do it alone. You need to have more capital,” she explains, speaking from experience about the continuous nature of agricultural investment.
Collective Progress And Shared Learning
Mokwena is open to public or private partnerships to take her business forward, but she is uncompromising in her expectations: “The investors mustn’t just give us smaller money. They must give us money above millions so that we can build sustainable enterprises. “We need money to be able to run and maintain the infrastructure,” she says emphatically.
Mokwena’s advocacy for farmer collaboration stems from her belief in collective progress and shared learning. She strongly emphasises the importance of farmers working together and sharing lessons and experiences to overcome common challenges. Her participation in competitions such as the Hollard one serves multiple purposes beyond personal recognition.
Mokwena entered the Future Agri Perspectives Women’s Voice Competition for the second time this year and she notes her first attempt was an opportunity to learn and improve her operations. Her top five placement this year demonstrates her growth and serves as validation of her approach. More importantly, she uses these platforms to inspire others and to challenge agricultural stereotypes.
She takes pride in standing on public platforms to inspire others and challenge the perception that women farmers belong only in the fields rather than in leadership roles. Through competitions and public appearances, she leverages her visibility to mentor and motivate others in the agricultural community.
Her approach to competitions reveals a strategic mindset focused on continuous improvement. She highlights the value of these events as opportunities to learn from and work alongside farmers from diverse sectors. Rather than viewing competition purely as recognition, she treats it as a platform for knowledge exchange and community building.
Mokwena’s decision to combine broiler production with vegetable farming reflects sophisticated risk management. The spinach and cabbage production provides cash flow stability when chicken farming faces setbacks, demonstrating her understanding of agricultural market volatility.
