Grow your own fresh and healthy produce
The dire effects of the Covid-19 pandemic will be felt long after a vaccine has been found, and it is for that reason he has called on every household to start cultivating backyard vegetable gardens for planting.
People should return to gardening and grow their own produce.
This was the core message from Mpumalanga MEC for Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment, Vusi Shongwe, after a visit to farms in the Mpumalanga area.
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The dire effects of the Covid-19 pandemic will be felt long after a vaccine has been found, and it is for that reason he has called on every household to start cultivating backyard vegetable gardens for planting.
Shongwe reiterated government’s commitment to shield poor families from hunger, but he advised families to supplement their food by planting vegetables, and where possible fruit trees in their own yards.
“There is no reason why every family with a yard does not grow a vegetable garden, no permit or permission is required to grow vegetables in your yard.
“We are heading for tough times because of this virus.
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“Some breadwinners who only get paid for the actual work they do are unable to go to work and will not get an income,” he said.
“And that will inevitably lead to a loss of income, and that means families will go to bed without food.
“Food parcels which are being distributed are not sustainable and there is no guarantee that they will be regularly available.”
Shongwe plans to engage all municipalities to look at making vacant land available for communities to plough.
“We are going to revive that programme and where possible we will donate seeds and working tools.
“Every municipal ward must have a vegetable garden to cushion those who cannot afford food,” he said.
“We must resuscitate the spirit of being self-reliant among our people.
“While we fight the Covid-19 virus and other deadly diseases on one hand, we might also fight hunger and starvation aggressively because our communities can also die from malnutrition.”
Shongwe made it clear that the intention of encouraging households, particularly the poor, to start growing their own food is not to eliminate hawkers who earn a living through the sale of vegetables.
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