Eastern Cape MEC for Agriculture Nonceba Kontsiwe, has issued a powerful call to action, urging communities to actively engage in food production to address hunger and socio-economic challenges within the province.
Kontsiwe stated, In embracing Ubuntu, no one must go to bed hungry especially when there is an abundance of land to grow cops and rear livestock in our homesteads. ILIMA is a clarion call to all communities in the Eastern Cape to get out of our comfort zones, dirtying our hands and engaging fully in increased food production to fight poverty, high unemployment and income inequality.”
The MEC s remarks come as the Department of Agriculture invites proposals from interested parties to collaborate on the Community Food Production Scheme ILIMA LOKULIMA. This initiative, running from 2025 to 2030, seeks to boost food production at both household and community levels. The deadline for registration of interest is 06 June 2025.
This aligns with the Eastern Cape Provincial Government s broader development agenda, as agriculture remains one of the strategic growth frontiers for accelerating economic development, creating sustainable employment, and ensuring food security.
The Department has already made significant strides in supporting vulnerable households. In the 2024/25 financial year, 30 000 households received production packs through the ILIMA/LETSEMA program, in partnership with the national department. An additional 12 000 households were supported through the Presidential Employment Stimulus (PES) programme.
It is a call to action for all those operating in the space of food production to join hands and leverage on each other s skills, experience and resources. This is an intentional and
deliberate effort to increase food production, fight child malnutrition and poverty,” added Kontsiwe.
The ILIMA LOKULIMA programme will focus on increasing household food production of grains, vegetables, poultry, piggery and beekeeping initiatives at the household or community level. A key aspect of the development will be the aggregation of household gardens and small-scale livestock production as well as beekeeping projects. This aggregation will enable communities to store, process, package and sell surplus produce, ultimately establishing food hubs within the province and enhancing food and nutrition security in the province.
Applications are invited from South African citizens and locally based Community Development Organizations with a footprint in the Eastern Cape, as well as Cooperatives, Traditional Councils, Schools, Clinics, NPOs, NGOs, and CBOs.
