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Flagstaff-born Agri-entrepreneur Athizintle Nkaqa is one of the chosen Enterprise Grant Funding beneficiaries for the 2023/2024 financial year.
The Ingquza Hill Local Municipality council adopted the enterprise grant funding policy and took a resolution to use this as one of the funding tools to be used to improve access to finance which seems to be one of the major challenges faced by SMMEs leading to poor sustainability.
It is therefore against this background that a budget of R2 000 000.00 has been set aside to assist SMMEs with business start-up capital, pre-implementation studies, and business growth funding.
The municipality presented the selected individuals for the grant funding support program. Each beneficiary was awarded an amount that each person had applied for. The grant funding however does not award the beneficiaries with cash but rather provides the beneficiaries with the goods or products applied for.
Athizintle founder and owner of Flying Eagle Mixed Farming grew up in a family where farming was practiced in a backyard for living and later pursued Diploma in Animal Production. When she saw the statistics of the unemployment rate she decided to start her own business because of the skill and land to practice farming.
“I have 12 ha of the land but I’m only using 5 ha for now.
In June 2019 I was an intern at Drdar where I was placed in a nursery (crop production) it was when I realized they are cash crops that can return your money in a short period without spending a lot of money, then I got the inspiration to start my farming business. So I used my stipend to make a piggery structure, buy pigs, tink, a water pump engine, and pipe. I started with 6 pigs (5 sows and 1 boar) but now they are more than 30 and I supply vegetables to retailer shops, local shops, and schools,” she explains.
Despite the challenges of having a lack of water and no source of income her journey so far has been quite interesting, learning every day about how to tackle the challenges she faces farming has taught her patience faith and dedication.
Getting the funding was a dream come true as I will be able to get what I’ve always wanted. I am pleased to be one of the beneficiaries, I thank them for believing in what I do and seeing the potential.
