The budget programmes of Agriculture and Rural Development were separated at the start of the 2012/2013 financial year.
AGRICULTURE BUDGET PROGRAMMES
The budget of the Agricultural component comprises of seven main programmes, namely;
Programme 1: Administration
Administration is structured “to manage and formulate agricultural policies in the Province and plan, organise, co-ordinate, finance and control all agricultural functions in the Department”. The programme also ensures that there are appropriate support services to all other programmes with regard to finance, personnel, information, communication, logistics and procurement. The programme comprises of the Offices of the Executive Authority and Senior Management, including Internal Audit, Special Programmes and the budgets of multifunction managers. Two other supportive sub-programmes viz. Corporate Services and Financial Management also form part of the programme and Communication Services constitutes the fifth sub-programme.
Programme 2: Sustainable Resource Management
This programme of budget “provides agricultural support services to farmers in order to ensure the sustainable management of agricultural resources”. The key services to be performed are those in respect of agricultural engineering, soil conservation and Land Care. The sub-programmes are Engineering Services, Land Care, Land Use Management and Disaster Risk Management.
Programme 3: Farmer Support and Development
The programme has been structured to “provide extension and training to farmers with special emphasis on developing emerging farmers, implementation of land reform programmes and agricultural-rural development projects”. The programme also makes provision for Food Security support services and assists actively with the implementation of the community projects funded from Ilima/Letsema and the Comprehensive Agriculture Support Programme (CASP). The sub-programmes include Farmer Settlement& Development, Extension and Advisory Services and Food Security.
Programme 4: Veterinary Services
The objective of the programme is “to provide veterinary services to clients to ensure healthy animals and the welfare of the people of South Africa”. The sub-programmes are Animal Health, Export Control, Veterinary Public Health and Veterinary Laboratory Services.
Programme 5: Research, Technology and Development Services
The primary objective is “to render agricultural research services and the development of information systems with regard to crop production, animal production and resource utilization technologies”. The sub-programmes are Research, Technology Transfer Services andInfrastructure Support Services.
Programme 6: Agricultural Economic Services
The programme has been structured “to provide economic support to internal and external clients with regard to marketing, statistical information including financial feasibility and economic viability studies”. The sub-programmes are Agri-Business Support and Development and Macro-economic Support
Programme 7: Structured Agricultural Training
The purpose of Structured Agricultural Training is “to facilitate and provide education to all participants in the agricultural sector” in order to establish a knowledgeable and competitive sector. Tertiary agricultural and non-formal training are provided by the Glen College of Agriculture, a fully accredited institution with the Higher Education Qualification Committee (HEQC). The sub-programmes are Higher Education & Training and Further Education and Training.
RURAL DEVELOPMENT BUDGET PROGRAMMES
The budget of the Rural Development component comprises of main programmes, namely;
Programme 1: Administration
The programme is structured “to render administrative support services and plan, organise, co-ordinate”. The programme also ensures that there are appropriate support services to all other programmes with regard to finance, personnel, information, communication, logistics and procurement. The programme comprises of the Offices of the Head of Department (HOD) and Monitoring & Reporting.
Programme 2: Development Planning
Thepurpose of the programme “is to initiate and plan development in order to address needs that have been identified”. The sub-programmes include Institutional Coordination and Special Projects, Rural Infrastructure Development and Land and Agrarian Transformation.
Programme 3: Social Facilitation
The programme has been structured to engage communities on a continuous basis on priorities.