Speaking at the sixth Biennial LandCare Conference in Durban yesterday (22 September), Zokwana explained that conservation agriculture helped to conserve soil moisture, reduce soil erosion, increase crop yields while reducing input costs and improving SA agriculture’s competitiveness.
“Considering that climate change is ranked high among top risks by impact and likelihood combined, my department is engaging stakeholders in the promotion of conservation agriculture and climate smart agriculture initiatives,” he said.
SA’s LandCare programme, initiated in 1997, contributes to the department’s mandate for promoting food and nutritional security in the country by enhancing the sustainable use and management of agricultural natural resources, said Zokwana.
In the past five years the programme had resulted in the rehabilitation of nearly 213 000ha of previously degraded agricultural land, he said.
