By Charmaine Ndlela
The Portfolio Committee on Agriculture has demanded accountability for the collapse of the R195 million Ncera Macadamia Farming Project in the Eastern Cape.
The government-funded nut farming initiative has been struggling for nearly two years, raising serious concerns about mismanagement and inadequate oversight.
Launched in 2006 near East London, the project was established as a public-private partnership aimed at promoting rural development and job creation.
Committee chairperson Dina Pule called for full accountability from all stakeholders involved, including private business partners, traditional authorities and members of the local community.
“It was disappointing to see the failure of such a project, which had the potential to lift many people from the nine villages under the Imidushane yaseLwandle Traditional Authority out of poverty,” Pule said.
She described the collapse of the Ncera project as a major setback for economic development and employment in the province.
“The government invested heavily in this project for the benefit of the community. It is painful to see a father who once had a job and could provide for his family now forced back into poverty because of its failure,” she added.
The committee also raised serious concerns about the project’s failure to submit financial reports and is seeking accountability for the loss of the multimillion-rand investment.
Pule said the Eastern Cape Rural Development Agency has since taken over the project and that the committee will present a report outlining plans to revive it.
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