Dr Sam Motsuenyane, Patron of the Dr Sam Motsuenyane RuralDevelopment Foundation, speaking at the Dr Sam Motsuenyaneinaugural lecture at the Pretoria Campus on Friday, 1 June.
The purpose of the lecture was to conscientise South Africans about the need to support the development of rural agriculture in all ways possible, and to bring awareness to the state of agriculture in the country.
Dr Motsuenyane, who has played an instrumental role in the training and mentorship of farmers at the TUT farm, said being a successful farmer needs passion, hard work and an open mind. TUT has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Dr Sam Motsuenyane Rural Development Foundation in this regard.
The latter has trained 2 300 people (including TUT students) in five provinces, to help address skills shortages and unemployment. With the help of the Foundation, the TUT farm trains students from the Department of Crop Sciences, who are now doing internships at the Foundation. The TUT farm boasts six female farmers of the year.
In his lecture, Dr Motsuenyane said: “It is advisable for young upcoming farmers to find relevant skills and training before being exposed to the real world. Our door is open for everyone who needs mentorship and relevant skills relating to rural development. Let us create our own legacy and open the industry to the upcoming young minds,” he added.
In his address, Mboweni encouraged the audience to look beyond their careers and also start businesses that could benefit the larger population. “It is always advisable to give a helping hand to the needy. This is done by the businesses that we create outside of our day-to-day work. Such initiatives bring life to our people,” he added.
Dr Motsuenyane is a man of the soil and his passion is to see people putting soil to optimum use.
After retirement from being the South African Ambassador to Saudi Arabia and five other states, he embarked on the advancement of his age-old ambition of teaching the rural Black communities on the use of soil.