There is a particular kind of frustration that comes from watching a solvable problem go unsolved.
By Reginald Zalisile Mayekiso
South Africa is not a country lacking in potential. Across its provinces, we have fertile soil, diverse climates and vast tracts of land capable of producing food at scale. We have communities with deep agricultural knowledge passed down through generations. We have people willing to work, build and feed this nation.
And yet, nearly 14 million South Africans go to bed hungry.
This is not because the land is barren. It is not because the people are incapable. It is because the connection between the two has been neglected. Across rural South Africa, there is land lying idle – not beyond recovery, but simply unsupported. At the same time, there are communities facing hunger and unemployment.
That contradiction should concern all of us. It should also push us to rethink the way we have approached this challenge.
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The Resources Already Exist
For too long, food insecurity has been framed primarily as a shortage of resources: not enough funding, not enough infrastructure and not enough intervention. While these constraints are real, they are not the full story.
The truth is more uncomfortable: The foundational resources already exist. What has been missing is coordination, consistency and long-term commitment. We have not built the systems that turn potential into production.
My own journey began in 2013 with just 13 ewe lambs and a belief that rural land, when properly supported, could become an engine of economic activity. There was no large capital injection. No guaranteed outcomes. Just a decision to start where I was, with what I had, and to build deliberately over time.
Today, that effort has grown into Olifantshoek Trading Enterprise, operating in the Gamagara Local Municipality. Our work spans agriculture, mining support services and mechanical repair. This diversification was not accidental. It reflects the realities of rural economies, where resilience depends on multiple streams of activity rather than a single focus.
But at its core, our work is grounded in a simple principle: Idle land and hungry people should not coexist.
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Beyond Once-Off Interventions
We do not approach agriculture as a once-off intervention. We prepare land, introduce mechanisation where it has long been absent, and support livestock and poultry operations that generate both food and income. More importantly, we remain present.
One of the greatest failures in rural development has been the tendency to intervene and then withdraw. Training is delivered, resources are allocated, and then communities are left to navigate complex agricultural systems on their own.
That approach does not build sustainability. It builds dependency. What we have learned is that emerging farmers do not need temporary support. They need consistent partnership. They need access to equipment, markets and technical knowledge that enables them to operate independently and competitively.
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Emerging Farmers Are Economic Participants
Through the revival of the Olifantshoek Small-Scale Farmers’ Association, we have seen what becomes possible when farmers are organised, supported and connected. Productivity improves. Confidence grows. Communities begin to shift.
We must also confront how we speak about emerging farmers in this country. Too often, they are framed as beneficiaries rather than economic participants. But the reality is different.
These are individuals with a deep understanding of their land and a vested interest in its productivity. What many lack is not capability, but access to the tools and systems that commercial agriculture has long relied on. Close that gap and the results can be transformative.
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Agriculture as an Economic Driver
This is not just a moral argument. It is an economic one.
When rural communities produce their own food, they become more resilient. When agriculture is activated, it creates jobs not only on farms, but across supply chains, transport systems and local markets. Money begins to circulate within communities instead of leaving them.
By integrating agriculture with services such as mechanical repair and mining support, we have seen how local economies can become more stable and inclusive. Growth becomes shared. Opportunity becomes accessible. This is not a theoretical model. It is already happening.
The broader lesson is clear: The solution to South Africa’s food insecurity is not something distant or abstract. It is already here. It is in our land. It is in our people. It lies in the commitment to connect the two through sustained, practical support.
We cannot continue to accept a reality where hunger and unused land exist side by side. That is not an inevitability. It is a failure of alignment. The question is no longer whether this approach can work. We have seen that it can. The real question is: Why is it not being implemented at scale?
Reginald Zalisile Mayekiso is a Northern Cape entrepreneur, commercial farmer and Chairperson of the Multi Business Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this opinion piece are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views, positions, or policies of African Farming, its management, employees, partners, or associates.
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