Mpumalanga farmers donate groceries and fresh produce to different communities

In a bid to assist the government in feeding the poor during the Covid-19 national lockdown, Mpumalanga Farmer Association gifted 350 households in the Nkomazi municipality with groceries. Moreover, the association will also donate food to the most rural municipalities, Dr JS Moroka, Mkhondo and Bushbuckridge to mention a few.

The association took off whatever they had, including their produce to give to the 54 villages in Nkomazi municipality on Tuesday. Selby Mamba, Acting CEO of Mpumalanga Farmer Association said they used a database from traditional leaders as they saw that more and more people are coming out asking for food.

“After seeing people being on the streets and some saying they are out trying to get some food to eat, we, therefore, realized that government can’t do it alone. As farmers we have land which we do our business on and some of these people are employees, and looking at this area in Mpumalanga we have the highest [Covid-19] infections, that’s why we decided to help with our crops and also the money we have to get this food. So, we have all kinds of crops, we targeted nine villages here because those are the most affected,” said Mamba.

One of the beneficiaries, George Makamu said “At home, no one is working and my parents are not fit to work, so I have to try to get food for my family. I’m grateful for my chief who made sure that our house is one of the beneficiaries. We didn’t have mealie meal or anything to eat today but now with all the food we got and fruits, it’s Christmas at home, we are going to eat rice and meat”.

Chairperson of the Mpumalanga house of traditional leaders, Inkosi Hhoyi Sandile Ngomane, added that the farmers have done is what is needed because they are farming in the very same land owned by the traditional leadership. “Yes, they came. We are thankful because some of these families no one is working and you can imagine what they are going through at this time. With the food given to them, we are asking for the public to stay at home and be safe from the coronavirus because if they are not careful, they will die,” concluded Ngomane.