Senwes Scenario December 2018 / January 2019 | Page 11

AGRICULTURAL | LANDBOUKUNDIG
NEWS
BE AWARE OF THE ASPECTS WHICH
MAKE YOU A TARGET
Easy access to the farm - apply the protocol for farm
access on a continuous basis;
Large sums of cash kept at the house, particularly
when farming products are sold on the farm;
Visible and easy access to safes;
Agri SA Congress
Highlights 2018
Easy access to vehicles to make a getaway - remove
keys from unused vehicles;
Be careful when going out in the dark to investigate;
Lack of safety of the home - install safety gates
at every outside door, burglar proofing in front of
windows that can open and install a good alarm
system;
Poor communication between farmers - make sure
there is good communication systems between
neighbours.
misconception of the broader community about commercial
agriculture and how it can be improved.
Although the Trust Fund is mainly focused on the improve-
ment of the rural safety situation and support of the safety
projects, safety can also be improved by means of proactive
planning. To be proactive means that the individual and the
community have to be prepared for any event. Although indi-
viduals are able to protect themselves to some extent, a vig-
ilant community is an effective deterrent. The mechanisms of
rural safety means that your house should be made safe, the
practicing of an emergency plan by citizens and the commu-
nity, organised actions and the gathering of information and
communication between employer and employee and with
the broader community and farm watches. Curb crime by
becoming involved with organised agriculture structures and
the implementaton of rural safety plans. No measure of pro-
tection is a guarantee that a farm attack will not take place,
but it could delay or impede an attack.
One of the pillars for the successful implementation of the
Rural Safety Strategy is the reservist system. Together with
a well functioning farm watch system and active communi-
ty involvement, reservists can be an important mechanism
to prevent farm attacks. Reservists therefore play a role in
curbing crime and should be promoted at community level.
The core functions of reservists involve general functional
service at station level, as well as the prevention, combat-
ting and investigation of crime, maintaining public order, the
protection of citizens and their property and maintaining and
enforcing legislation. It is therefore very important for farm-
ing communities to become involved in the safety structures
available to them.
*Read more about safety in Hartbeesfontein in the next edition of
the Senwes Scenario .
 By Marlon Abrahams
Senwes Scenario Editor-in-Chief
T
he Senwes sponsored Agri SA Congress was held
at the prestigious Maslow Hotel in Times Square,
Pretoria on 9 and 10 October this year and marked
a continuation of the positive energy flowing through
agriculture following Landbouweekblad’s Bela Bela Land Summit
earlier in the year.
The congress highlights included the re-election of Dan Kriek
as the organisation’s president and an address by one of South
Africa’s wealthiest businessmen, Patrice Motsepe, who made
the point that land reform was “not a black/white issue. If all of
us were green and spoke the same language…if success was
only for those whose surnames are Motsepe, we would have a
revolution…we have to do this together or we all fail.”
Senwes again made a contribution to the AgriSecuritas
fund together with NWK and OFM, but Bayer stole the show by
donating a whopping R1 000 000.
The second day of the congress delivered another highlight
when Agri SA's Deputy Executive Director, Christo van der
Rheede, launched Agrohub at https://agrohub.co.za/; a new web
portal aimed at “promoting and unlocking agri-opportunities.”
Visit the website and sign up to make a difference now!
Senwes congratulates Agri SA on a successful congress.
Japie Grobler, AgriSecuritas Chairman, Francois Strydom (Senwes
CEO), Johan Bezuidenhout (NWK) and OFM General Manager,
Nick Efstathiou.
SENWES SCENARIO | TECHNOLOGY & INNOVATION 2018
09