The Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure, Dean Macpherson, has signed a memorandum of cooperation with Agriculture South Africa AgriSA and the Agricultural Business Chamber Agbiz to strengthen critical road infrastructure across the Free State
The agreement was signed at the Peritum Agricultural Institute in Bloemfontein, bringing together key stakeholders including MEC for Public Works and Infrastructure Kathleen Dibolelo Mance, head of Infrastructure South Africa Mameetse Masemola, Agbiz CEO Theo Boshoff, and AgriSA CEO Johann Kotzé.
The memorandum is a structured framework to identify and prioritise rural road corridors that carry high volumes of agricultural freight and have significant economic impact. These roads, which are essential for transporting crops and agricultural goods, will now be assessed and ranked to determine where maintenance and upgrades will deliver the greatest economic return.
Macpherson explained that the initiative emerged from discussions with Boshoff and Kotzé at the National Maize Producers’ Organisation conference last year. The vision is to support farmers by targeting infrastructure investment where it matters most.
He said the initiative would use data supplied by AgriSA and Agbiz to identify high volume corridors where investment would have the greatest impact, in a bid to help drive economic growth and sustain job creation.
“With this initiative from Infrastructure South Africa, in partnership with AgriSA and Agbiz, we will be able to calculate the economic impact of roads that carry high volumes of agricultural output in the Free State, and demonstrate how much costs can be reduced if those roads are improved or rehabilitated,” Macpherson said.
“This will help all spheres of government direct infrastructure investment towards roads with the greatest potential to reduce logistics costs for farmers, which in turn will help lower costs for consumers,” Macpherson said.
As South Africa’s breadbasket, the Free State provides an ideal testing ground for the pilot programme. Improving the efficiency of rural logistics networks in the province could unlock measurable benefits for farmers, agribusinesses, and consumers nationwide.
“We thank the provincial government for its collaboration and support as we implement this programme. We know that if farmers succeed, South Africa succeeds, and we believe this pilot is a critical first step in ensuring that farmers have the infrastructure necessary to thrive,” he said.
By focusing on high volume agricultural corridors, the partnership ensures that limited public resources are directed where they can generate the most value for farming communities and the broader economy.
“When rural roads fail, farmers carry the burden first. Higher transport costs reduce profitability, limit reinvestment into farms, and ultimately threaten the sustainability of agricultural businesses. Supporting farmers means fixing the infrastructure that underpins their operations so that we can meaningfully grow the economy and create much needed jobs,” Macpherson said.