Gwede Mantashe delivers keynote address at Agri East Cape conference

01 Feb 2016 | Admin Author

ANC Secretary-General, Gwede Mantashe, says agriculture is the economic sector of the future.

Speaking at Agri Eastern Cape's annual congress in Port Elizabeth on Wednesday, Mantashe said food security is critical and will always be in the future.

Algoa FM's Deon Blume reports from the congress:

Mantashe says agriculture is a critical economic sector and not only one of social transformations.

He says the Eastern Cape has the biggest potential of all the provinces for agriculture alongside tourism and industrial development.

Mantashe says it's critical that government supports farming initiatives and the interest in product processing.

He added that investment in skills development was the surest way of building a better future in the sector.

Meanwhile, Free State Agriculture says it agrees and supports government's views that the land reform process should be conducted democratically and dividing land should be fare.

This was the message from the president of Free State Agriculture, Dan Kriek, who was speaking at the organization's annual congress in Bloemfontein today.

He told role players in the industry that farmers already dedicated themselves to land reform more than eight years ago when a plan based on sound economic and constitutional principles was drawn up.

The congress ends on Thursday.