Smallholder support to be expanded in Southern Africa

Solidaridad Network Trust, an international organisation working towards achieving sustainable regional production of agricultural commodities, has announced that it would be expanding its programme for smallholder sugar cane producers to other countries in Southern Africa.

To date, the organisation has supported the establishment of more than
3 000 smallholder sugar cane producers in South Africa and Malawi.

This was according to Mandla Nkomo, Solidaridad’s regional managing director for Southern Africa.

About 75% of the African continent’s sugar cane was produced by both large and small-scale producers in southern Africa. “Our intention is, among other things, to support small-scale producers through improving irrigated water-use efficiencies,” he said.

Solidaridad also recently partnered with private sector entities to improve the efficiency bulk water supply in Noodsberg, KwaZulu-Natal, Chikwawa (Malawi) and Mazabuka (Zambia).

This initiative was expected to eventually support about 5 000 small-scale sugar cane growers across the region, while also aiming to improve governance and sustainable water use.

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