The sustainable agriculture imperative: implications for South African agricultural extension

Abstract

This paper draw on relevant published (review)

Evaluation of policies promoting sustainable agriculture in South Africa

“…Using the pillars of sustainable agriculture (Khwidzhili & Worth, 2016), an in-depth comparison between South Africa's policy on agriculture in sustainable development and its white paper on agriculture was conducted to establish the presence of the pillars in both documents (Hart, 1998). This paper is a result of an informative, critical and useful synthesis of already existing literature on sustainable agriculture (Bolderston, 2008).…”

“…This paper has reviewed two anchor policies against the framework of the five pillars of sustainable agriculture (Khwidzhili & Worth, 2016). The review highlights the fundamental need for the South African government to develop a policy for sustainable agriculture to harmonise its plan for agriculture as reflected in the white paper with the objectives of its policy on sustainable development.…”

“…These policies seek to promote sustainable agricultural practices throughout the nine provinces of the country. This paper evaluates these policies in terms of five pillars of sustainable agriculture, namely biological productivity; economic viability; protection of natural resources; reduced levels of risk; and social acceptance (Khwidzhili & Worth, 2016). The policies are evaluated as to the extent to which they address the five pillars.…”

Evaluation of South Africa's public agricultural extension in the context of sustainable agriculture

“…Currently, with regards to sustainable agriculture, agricultural extension advises farmers based on the three traditional pillars of sustainability, namely economic, environmental and social viability (Magoro & Hlungwani, 2014). However, more current thinking suggests that a five-pillar framework should be applied (Khwidzhili & Worth, 2016) which encompasses maintaining and increasing biological productivity, decreasing the level of risk to ensure larger security, protecting the quality of natural resources, ensuring agricultural production is economically viable, and ensuring agricultural production is socially acceptable.…”

“…The paper then presents a brief outline of the evolution of public sector extension in South Africa, and argues that, given the role extension has played over the last several decades, the state extension service should be well-positioned to promote sustainable agriculture even if this has not been its primary focus in the past. Furthermore, since extension services are driven by policy, the paper examines the extent to which current South African national policy guiding extension and advisory services supports the promotion of sustainable agriculture using the five pillars of sustainable agriculture established by Khwidzhili and Worth (2016). Other initiatives to support extension and advisory services are also discussed.…”