Agri BIZNIZ Summit to address agricultural needs

The challenges and opportunities in Africa's agricultural sector will fall under the spotlight at the second Agribizniz Summit, which takes place on 11-12 August at the Expo Centre in Johannesburg. The event forms part of the African Farmers Workshop and Expo (AFWE) which runs from 12 to 14 August at the same venue.

A number of high-level speakers and participants have been secured:

• Sustainable food production to address food security in Africa - The state and transformation of food security in Africa: Keneilwe Nailana - Senior Agricultural Economist, Economic Research and Business Intelligence: Land Bank; Chris Sturgess - Director of the Commodities Division: JSE; Nico Groenewald - Head of Agriculture: Standard Bank; Mandla Nkomo - Operations Director: Technoserve; Molatelo Mamadi - Directorate: Food Security and Rural Development - Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry
  
• Smart farming: Exploring alternative, smart and new opportunities to feed population growth in cities: Anold Derembe - Feed Programme Manager: Food and Trees for Africa; Wayner Harpur - Owner: Urban Farms; Prof Michael Rudolph - Director and Founder: Siyakhana; Dr Naude Malan, Senior Lecturer, Department of Anthropology and Development Studies: University of Johannesburg
  
• Grain and poultry imports saturating the consumer market for South African farmers: Marthinus Stander - South African Poultry Association (SAPA) Chairperson; Zolile Duze - General Manager: Grain Farmer Development Association
  
• The new proposed land bill: Thomas Walters - Spokesperson: Gauteng Agriculture and Rural Development; Louw Steytler - Chairperson: Grain SA; Annelise Crosby - Parliamentary Representative: Grain SA
  
• Promoting trade and investment appeal to drive agribusiness growth - Agribusiness trade opportunities in Africa: Antois van der Westhuizen - Divisional Head, Agriculture: Nedbank Limited
  
• Agro logistics/sectoral developments and opportunities, rail and road infrastructure developments: Dr Esbeth van Dyk - Principal Supply Chain Analyst: CSIR
  
• Agro processing investment opportunities: Dr Keith du Plessis - Business Development Manager, Agro-processing: Coega Development Corporation

"This two-day Agribizniz Summit enables delegates, captains of industry, executives, academics and observers across the agribusiness value chain to engage, network and debate on critical issues in the agricultural industry," explains Mahlatse Masimini, MD of Moshate Media, organisers of the event. "In recent years, the importance of smallholders' contributions to agriculture has gained increasing recognition, with the Government allocating more than R7bn towards assisting 435,000 subsistence and 545,000 smallholder farmers over the next three years. The Agribizniz Summit and the African Farmers Workshop and Expo provide an ideal platform to reach these markets," adds Masimini.

This year's Agribizniz Summit is sponsored by Transnet and Tiger Brands.

AFWE to help transform farming

The Agribizniz Summit runs alongside the AFWE, which aims to help transform farming through empowerment programmes, provision of tools and equipment, teaching best practices to farmers, and fostering relations between commercial and emerging farmers, while showcasing all the opportunities that the agricultural sector has to offer.

"AFWE is really a one stop shop for emerging farmers," says Masimini. "Through the combination of an indoor and outdoor expo, a breeders expo, daily workshops, the AgriYouth Indaba and the Agribizniz Summit, visitors have a unique opportunity to access a wealth of information, resources, products and services - all of which will equip emerging and subsistence farmers to run more efficient, more profitable farms." The types of products that will be showcased include agricultural machinery and commercial vehicles, irrigation equipment, research organisations, financial services, chemical products, livestock, dairy equipment, IT technology and animal health products.

As a result of the show's phenomenal success, AFWE events will be hosted in three additional provinces this year - KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo and the North West - with the same objectives.