From CNN, which mentions to South African pro-free-market advocate in an article: "The sweet aroma of blossoming orange trees wafts through the air as a white-haired figure moves slowly along the green-choked path. Aided by a yard stick, 85-year-old Sam Motsuenyane walks through his citrus orchard in South Africa's Winterveldt area, occasionally stopping to check the lush fruits hanging from the trees. The scene strikes a sharp contrast to what the veteran agriculturalist encountered when he returned to the area in early 2000 to retire following a successful career as a South African diplomat and leading banker. Weeds and bushes had reclaimed the deserted plots as much of the land laid fallow and under-utilized due to lack of resources and the local farmers' economic hardship. 'I decided that something had to be done and with my agricultural background, I thought I could perhaps initiate something that could help the people,' says Motsuenyane."
The article continues: "As a result, the farming pioneer, whose first business was a plant nursery in 1963, embarked on a mission to show small plot owners how to lift themselves out of poverty by growing orange trees on a commercial scale. He drummed up private sector financial support to buy orange trees and in 2002 he launched the Winterveldt Citrus Project, a community initiative which enables small holders to make a living and become self-sufficient by training them how to work the land. So far, the project has helped to set up some 100 small farms."
Only 3.5% of the African continent's arable land is irrigated: "Back in the Winterveldt fields, Motsuenyane also calls on South African leaders to take a greater role in encouraging people to work on the land. 'The government has to do a great deal to rekindle the enthusiasm which once existed in agriculture,' Motsuenyane, who ran the first black-owned bank in post-Apartheid South Africa, says. Passionate about farming, Motsuenyane believes it's smallholdings that have the potential to revitalize communities and help curb South Africa's soaring levels of unemployment. 'If we do not create sufficient employment opportunities in our country we will certainly end up in a very terrible situation,' he says. 'We must skill the black people to use that land in a way that can enable them to become job creators as well as contributors to the development of the country.'."
Sam Motsuenyane: "Agriculture Must Play A Critical Role In Africa's Future"
