Cape Forum signs agreement that opens door to agricultural careers for Western Cape learners
The Cape Forum and the independent agricultural training institution International Agricultural Academy for Africa (i3A) have just entered into a unique partnership that will offer coloured learners at agricultural schools in the Western Cape the opportunity to unlock a career in agriculture at an accelerated pace. This partnership will make it possible for learners to start their agricultural studies in diverse agricultural disciplines, including beef production, crop production, wildlife management or viticulture, from Grade 10 as part of i3A’s school programme. Learners will be eligible for this school programme from 2026.
Learners who meet all the programme requirements will obtain a national NQF 4 certificate by the end of matric. This vocational qualification enables learners to commence second-year studies for a National Diploma (NQF5) at the Western Cape Agricultural Academy (WCAA) or any other i3A campus directly after school.
In this way, the Cape Forum and i3A want to give disadvantaged coloured learners in particular access to affordable, quality training to prepare them for a career in agriculture in South Africa.
According to Bernard Pieters, Head of Community Activation at Cape Forum, this partnership aims to provide learners with the necessary resources to break the cycle of poverty in the coloured community. “We know that there is poverty and hardship in our coloured communities. That is why one of Cape Forum’s most important goals is to help coloured communities become self-sufficient. The focus on training is a critical component of this goal and through the partnership with i3A, we will be able to give young people a head start that will give them a huge head start on their path to a successful career.”
Fanie Cronje, director and campus head of the Western Cape Agricultural Academy, emphasises that this programme will make an important social contribution. “Our core activity is agricultural training. It is also an important element required for achieving the Cape Forum’s social objectives. The collaboration is therefore ideally positioned to benefit the community. We have developed this schools programme to, on the one hand, recognise the excellent teaching that is already taking place in the Western Cape agricultural schools and, on the other hand, to build on this success and create new opportunities for learners that will help them to make a success of their studies after school,” he explains.
The WCAA’s satellite campus will officially open next year at the Augsburg Agricultural Gymnasium in Clanwilliam. The campus will be able to accommodate 30 first-year students by 2026.
The Cape Forum will be visiting various schools in August, together with the Western Cape Department of Education, to introduce this initiative to learners and encourage them to take advantage of this opportunity. More information about this initiative will be available soon.
“We would like to thank the Cape Forum for their willingness to work with us to make this dream a reality,” adds Cronje.
“They say it takes a village to raise a child. We are part of the community that must prepare today’s children for a bright future. It is a privilege for us to work with i3A and be able to pool our resources to make this initiative a success,” Pieters concludes.
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More about i3A
Two non-profit organisations, namely Umnga Farmers and the Rural Foundation, are under the i3A umbrella. Umnga Farmers is based in Bloemfontein and provides training to residents of informal settlements and teaches them to be self-sufficient through a vegetable garden project. The Rural Foundation, in turn, focuses on improving the living conditions of agriworkers in Tulbagh and Elsenburg through education and sports (such as rugby sevens and netball).
