NATIONAL NEWS - At this stage, the Western Cape Department of Agriculture has not received any drought relief funding from the National Government.The Western Cape Department of Agriculture has reprioritized its equitable share budget to support drought-affected farmers.
Since 2015/16, the department has granted R80 million in drought relief. Once the Western Cape is declared a disaster, each municipality must file their own declaration, following an extensive assessment of the region’s agriculture sector. Drought relief can only be provided to affected farmers once the municipality has been declared a disaster and funds have been made available.
"Stock farmers and irrigation farmers are among the hardest hit by the drought," Bronwynne Jooste, the spokesperson the Western Cape MEC of Economic Opportunities, minster Alan Winde said.
"The Provincial disaster declaration will be used as a further motivation to request drought relief funding from the National Government."
In March, the Western Cape Department of Agriculture estimated that R96 million was needed to support farmers in drought affected areas for five months.
Decline
“In livestock, we estimate that more than 30 000 animals have been sold as farmers battle to feed their core herds. We’ve seen a decline in the volume of wine grapes harvested, in part due to a lack of irrigation water. This will result in an estimated R500 million loss in that industry," minister Winde said.
“Current water restrictions for irrigation farmers vary from 30% to 100% in the Berg/Riviersonderend water system. These restrictions can have a serious impact on the crop yields in 2017/18. It means very little water will be available for the very important post-harvest irrigation period. During post-harvest irrigation, water is needed to move the fertiliser into the soil in preparation for the next crop.
Technology
“During the irrigation season we also provided irrigators with near real-time data on the actual crop water use and water shortages experienced by their crops through the FruitLook project. Farmers can access accurate information on the water needs of their crops, field by field, at any given time. Using only satellite data and weather station data, we can tell farmers how much water their crops used in the previous week and whether the crops experienced any water deficits,” Winde said.
Application forms for drought relief can be obtained from the Western Cape Department of Agriculture’s regional offices and from Agri Western Cape.
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