The ComMark Approach is People-Centered, Farmer-Centered

Dr. Xolile Ngetu will look you straight in the eye and tell you, “It is what people have been wanting all these years.” He says that if ComMark could have been around 50 years ago development in the Eastern Cape would be in a different place now.
He knows what he’s talking about. Ngetu was born and raised in the Eastern Cape, educated at Medunsa Medical University of Southern Africa and holds a doctorate in veterinary medicine. He has been the key role player in ComMark’s Eastern Cape Red Meat Project (ECRMP) since 2005. He now holds the title of ECRMP Implementation Manager. Ask him why he likes his work and he’ll tell you, “I simply enjoy it. I know I’m helping people to help themselves.”

Ngetu represents ComMark’s strategic approach to developing agriculture in the Eastern Cape: connecting farmers to markets, technical expertise and contextual know-how.  He explains that the ECRMP has the power to impact Eastern Cape communities positively because ComMark directly engages farmers and mobilises multi-stakeholder interests for pro-poor development. ComMark has learned that it takes innovative thinking, trust and hard work with farmers, government and companies to find solutions to complex, integrated development problems.

Ngetu is a problem-solver. He’s also an educator. After qualifying for his degree he lectured in animal health for four years at Fort Cox College before becoming one of the first black lecturers in veterinary science at Onderstepoort, the Faculty of Veterinary Science at Pretoria University.

You will have to get up early – when the farmers do – but if you are in the Eastern Cape and tune into local radio station, Umhlobo Wenene FM, you might get to hear Ngetu demonstrate his expertise and local development innovations. He does about 20 radio shows a year. He says most of the queries are about animal health and marketing and he sometimes gets 10 phone calls a day from communal and emerging farmers who want to know more about ECRMP and need technical support. There are many communal and emerging farmers who are poised to break through the old structural barriers and become real contributors to local development. ComMark is there to help this process.

For decades, apartheid-era policies prevented communal farmers in the Eastern Cape from accessing markets, developing skills and infrastructure for small businesses. Most farmers are far from auction pens and abattoirs and are unfamiliar with how they work and what benefits they offer and they don’t have a clear understanding of what consumers want. While there is still much work to do to overcome this legacy, ComMark’s strategic interventions are creating the conditions for an increasing number of black farmers to participate in and then scale-up commercial production, management and marketing through the ECRMP. 

Noting ComMark’s integrated approach to development, Ngetu says the ECRMP works to create synergies and builds bridges for cooperation between district and local municipalities; departments of agriculture and various directorates, including agriculture extension, economics, marketing and veterinary services. The strategy also includes direct work with auctioneering companies; buyers; farmer organizations; institutions like the Agricultural Research Council (ARC) and the National Agricultural Marketing Council (NAMC); and feed and pharmaceutical companies.

Ngetu’s serious gaze shifts to a smile when he adds that some of the farmers and business leaders he works with are his former students.  This is the difference ComMark makes. Ngetu says “the ComMark approach is people-centered, farmer centered. The farmers are part and parcel. They are not the end product. Right from the implementation, ComMark is not a stand alone organisation. We are able to create relationships with other stakeholders and role players.”