Deadline looms for Covid-19 farmer relief fund applications

POLOKWANE  – The deadline for the application of COVID-19 farmer relief fund is looming.

Farmers who qualify to apply for the COVID-19 farmer relief fund have two remaining days to make their applications which will close on April 22. So far Limpopo has received over one thousand five  hundred applications from the farmers.

The COVID-19 relief fund was announced by the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries,
Thoko Didiza whose aim is to sustain food production and food security in the country amid  restrictions imposed by the national state of disaster.

An amount of R1,2 billion has been ring
fenced to help financially distressed small scale farmers.

In order to qualify for the relief fund, a
farmer needs to be a South Africa citizen who has been actively farming for a minimum period of  12 months.

A farmer must be registered on farmer register, commodity database or provincial data base and small holder farmers with annual turnover of between R50 000 and R1 million.

The MEC responsible for Agriculture and Rural Development in Limpopo Nandi Ndalane, has urged  qualifying farmers to hurry and make their applications as no application will be accepted after the deadline.

“Wednesday is the last day of applications. Time is quickly running out. Therefore,
I’m urging qualifying farmers to make their applications as the relief will go a long way in
sustaining food production and importantly food security for the people of Limpopo,” said
Ndalane.

She added that the relief fund will also make sure that farming as an economic sector
survives this difficult period of Covid-19 restrictions.

Farmers are reminded while they are advised to make their applications on line, all Departmental  service centres are open to help them make their applications.

All service centres are operating on normal working hours for the purpose of helping the farmers with their restrictions.