The shape of demand for high-level agricultural skills in the South African labour market

Abstract

A supply of high-level agricultural skills is foundational to the South African agricultural sector's capacity to improve the quality and range of agricultural products and services so as to support small agricultural producers, meet domestic needs for food security and increase the competitiveness of local products on global agricultural markets. Concerns about the coexistence of graduate unemployment and skills shortages in the agricultural sector prompt the question: What is the shape of demand for high-level agricultural skills in the South African labour market? To answer this, the authors conducted 83 interviews with respondents in private, public and non-governmental organisations involved in agriculture. The findings reveal a rising demand for high-level agricultural skills among farmers, farm managers and foremen; in research and product development; in the sales and marketing functions of firms supplying primary agriculture; in government entities across a wide range of occupations; and in public and private sector R&D.

¹Respectively, Senior Researcher and Research Director, Education, Science and Skills Development (ESSD) Programme, Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC), Pretoria. The research on which this article is based was undertaken for the Department of Agriculture, and the findings presented in the article form part of an earlier report: A study on graduate outputs for agricultural qualifications in SAQA accredited higher education institutions over a ten year period (Paterson et al., 2005).

Notes

¹Respectively, Senior Researcher and Research Director, Education, Science and Skills Development (ESSD) Programme, Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC), Pretoria. The research on which this article is based was undertaken for the Department of Agriculture, and the findings presented in the article form part of an earlier report: A study on graduate outputs for agricultural qualifications in SAQA accredited higher education institutions over a ten year period (Paterson et al., 2005).

¹These are referred to in this article as follows: NDip (National Diploma), BTech (Bachelor of Technology), BAgric (Bachelor of Agriculture), BSc (Bachelor of Science), MSc (Master of Science), PhD (Doctor of Philosophy).

²While food technology is typically taught in university faculties of science and agriculture and is therefore also strictly a high-level agricultural skill, interview respondents did not include it in the category of high-level agricultural qualifications but saw it rather as a separate high-level skill. The term ‘high-level agricultural skills’ in this article thus excludes skills in food technology, but makes separate mention of these as appropriate.

³For example, Mpumalanga Agricultural Development Corporation (MADC), Eastern Cape Development Corporation (ECDC), Free State Development Corporation (FDC), KwaZulu-Natal's Ithala and Limpopo Economic Development Enterprise (LimDev).