As South Africa grapples with rising food insecurity, unemployment, and mounting pressure on rural economies, Reginald Zalisile Mayekiso believes the country already holds the solution within its borders.
The founder of Olifantshoek Trading Enterprise, commonly known as OTE, has spent more than a decade working alongside emerging farmers to transform underutilised land into productive farming operations that support both food production and rural economic growth.
Operating within the Gamagara Local Municipality in the Northern Cape, OTE focuses on livestock and poultry farming, land preparation, mechanisation, and technical agricultural support aimed at helping farmers establish sustainable businesses.
For Mayekiso, agriculture is not simply about farming. It is about restoring economic participation and resilience in communities that have long been overlooked.
“South Africa has the land, the people, and the agricultural potential to make a meaningful impact on food insecurity,” said Mayekiso.
“What is often missing is structured support, implementation, and long term investment in emerging farmers. Our focus is on building sustainable agricultural systems that create long term economic participation and food production within rural communities.”
His journey began in 2013 with just 13 ewe lambs and a determination to prove that rural land, when supported correctly, could become a driver of economic activity.
“There was no large capital injection. No guaranteed outcomes. Just a decision to start where I was, with what I had, and to build deliberately over time,” he said.
Since then, the enterprise has expanded beyond agriculture to include mining support services and mechanical repair solutions, a diversified model that Mayekiso says reflects the realities of rural economies where resilience depends on multiple income streams.
Despite the growth of the business, Mayekiso says the core mission has remained unchanged.
“Idle land and hungry people should not coexist,” he said.
Unlike many short term agricultural interventions, OTE remains actively involved with farmers long after projects begin, helping them navigate the complexities of farming operations while building the skills needed for long term sustainability.
“One of the greatest failures in rural development has been the tendency to intervene and then withdraw,” Mayekiso said.
“Training is delivered, resources are allocated, and then communities are left to navigate complex agricultural systems alone. That approach does not build sustainability. It builds dependency.”
He believes one of the country’s biggest challenges is that emerging farmers are too often viewed as beneficiaries rather than contributors to the economy.
“Too often, emerging farmers are treated as beneficiaries instead of economic participants,” he said.
“The capability already exists within these communities. What is needed is access to equipment, technical support, markets, and consistent partnership that allows farmers to operate sustainably and competitively.”
Through initiatives such as the revival of the Olifantshoek Small Scale Farmers Association, OTE has already seen increased collaboration among farmers and stronger participation in agricultural activity.
Mayekiso argues that agriculture has the power to create ripple effects across rural communities by stimulating local markets, generating jobs, and improving food access.
“When rural communities produce their own food, they become more resilient,” he said.
“When agriculture is activated, it creates jobs not only on farms, but across supply chains, transport, and local markets. Money begins to circulate within communities instead of leaving them.”
For Mayekiso, the conversation around food insecurity needs to shift from scarcity to implementation.
“The solution to South Africa’s food insecurity is not something distant or abstract,” he said. “It is already here. It is in our land. It is in our people. It lies in the commitment to connect the two through sustained, practical support.”
As South Africa searches for practical solutions to growing socio economic challenges, Mayekiso believes the country can no longer afford to ignore the potential sitting in its rural communities.
“We cannot continue to accept a reality where hunger and unused land exist side by side,” he said. “That is not an inevitability. It is a failure of alignment. The question is no longer whether this approach can work. We have seen that it can. The real question is why it is not being implemented at scale.”
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