Helping small-scale farmers reach commercial status

Sinelizwi Fakade is a commercial grain farmer in Ugie in the Eastern Cape. He produces maize, sunflower, sorghum and soya bean on the 1 200ha farm Rocky Park. Fakade is a founding member and chairperson of the Ukhanyo Farmer Development (UFD) programme, an independent non-profit organisation. The UFD was formed by 36 young people who were graduates of Grain SA’s development programme. Before embarking on his farming journey, Fakade was a provincial coordinator at Grain SA.

“With our combined experience and skills, the UFD founders decided to start a youth-owned and women-led independent entity that [aims] to address the challenges that prohibit black farmers from reaching commercial status in the Eastern Cape.

“The UFD enables subsistence