Western Cape floods will have significant impact on agri sector & economy, says Winde

Western Cape Premier Alan Winde believes the recent floods will have a significant impact on the province’s agricultural sector and economy.

This as farms across the province have been severely affected by the recent downpours.

The provincial government said that damaged irrigation systems, crops, riverbanks, and heavy erosion had a negative impact on production and water quality.

The initial flood damage in the agricultural sector is estimated to be between R750 million and R1 billion.

However, Winde said that it was too soon to quantify the extent of the damage.

“The citrus harvest will have an impact which will be difficult to get products in and out. Most of the agricultural lands have been flooded, so we don’t know yet but we have to try and mitigate risk as quickly as possible,” said Winde.

Meanwhile, Western Cape Education Department spokesperson, Bronagh Hammond, said that the floods had also affected schooling in the province.

She said that 51 schools were closed last week Thursday in the Cape Winelands district due to flooding.

“This thankfully decreased to three schools today, with one school expected to remain closed for the remainder of the week in Metro East and we are still seeing higher than normal absence in some of the province,” said Hammond.

-EWN

In other news – Watch: Actress Celeste Ntuli hits the gym

South African comedian and actress, Celeste Ntuli hits the gym after being inspired by Thuso Mbedu, Connie Ferguson, Fezile Ntuli, Unathi Nkayi, and Lerato Mvelase.

Taking to Instagram, the comedian shared videos and photos of herself working out in the gym. She credits Unathi, Lerato, and Fezile for inspiring her on consistency; she credited the other women for the different exercises at the gym. Learn More