ANDILE MOSHOESHOE
AGRICULTURAL excellence in the Harry Gwala district of KwaZulu-Natal is not only a rhetoric but a deliberate and strategic effort to develop emerging farmers and enable them to attain high levels of success.
This was established at the recent 2025/26 Phez’komkhono Female Entrepreneur Awards ceremony at the Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre, Durban, when Nozuko Cezula’s dedication and passion in farming were paid off.
Cezula, a Kokstad-based farmer, won the MEC Special Category Overall Winner and Best Entrepreneur Export 1st Position.
The awards form part of empowering women who play a meaningful role in the economy and bridge the gender gap in food security. Cezula was among outstanding farmers recognised at the event honoured by KwaZulu-Natal MEC for the Department of Agriculture, Thembeka kaMdlopha Mthethwa.
The Best Entrepreneur Export award was for exporting maize to Mexico. She sacrificed her teaching profession in 2011 to pursue her passion in agriculture. Even though she comes from a family with a strong agricultural background, she had a deep-rooted passion in farming.
“After participating in the mechanisation programme in the Eastern Cape, introduced under former minister, Gugile Nkwinti, where we provided ploughing services to emerging farmers in rural areas, I was ultimately compelled to forgo my monthly salary in order to pursue my agricultural aspirations,” she stated as her farming enterprise has been diversified across three key commodities.
She specialises in beef production, yellow maize and mutton, as well as supplying to prominent local businesses.
She expressed her profound joy and fulfilment from the achievements and said that the recognition was both humbling and deeply rewarding.
The Harry Gwala District Municipality mayor Zamo Nxumalo congratulated Cezula and said that it was a source of immense pride to witness local farmers attaining such success and placing the district firmly on the map.
He emphasised that it remains their collective responsibility to ensure that all residents benefit from the district’s thriving agricultural sector, which continues to distinguish itself through excellence.
He further encouraged aspiring farmers not to lose hope but to seize opportunities provided by the government and make full use of the available support to realise their agricultural ambitions.
Mayor Lwanda Madikizela echoed Nxumalo’s sentiments and said: “It has always been the deliberate commitment of government to ensure that black communities, who were historically marginalised and deprived, are meaningfully included in government programmes aimed at improving their quality of life to also allow them to actively play a pivotal role to better South Africa.”
He emphasised that these initiatives are intended to ensure equitable participation in all sectors of the economy, including those that were previously dominated by a select few. He further noted that this progress stands as a true expression of freedom, affirming that every individual now has the opportunity to pursue their aspirations and uplift their lives without fear of discrimination on the basis of race.
