NZHELE – From this drought-stricken area comes the success story of Paulina Mukatuni, a lady who did not wait for land restitution or government hand-outs to fulfil her dream of being a farmer.

After the murder of her husband, Mr Gideon Mukatuni, who was a well-known businessman and taxi owner, the griefstricken Paulina decided to utilize the family’s 37 hectare stand as a farm to support herself and her four children, two boys and two girls.

Paulina subscribed to the Farmer’s Weekly and the Landbou Weekblad and started farming with cabbages and tomatoes. First she relied only on the rain, but later had four boreholes drilled and electrified when she could afford it. That allowed her to increase the size of her land and the success of her crops, with the help of micro irrigation. Paulina’s hard work soon started to pay off, turning her efforts into a very profitable venture.

In the beginning, the land was prepared by hand, but later she bought a second-hand tractor along with some agricultural equipment. Today, one will regularly find Paulina on the tractor, ploughing and preparing the land for planting. She specializes in tomatoes, cabbages, garlic, chillies, beetroot, green beans and butternuts. The green beans, garlic and chillies go to the fresh produce market in Johannesburg. The tomatoes go to Mozambique, Mpumelanga and local areas. Paulina also supplies Gants, the local canning factory in Dzanani, with tomatoes.

Paulina has in the past been voted Female Farmer of the Year in the Limpopo Province and has had opportunity to gain more agricultural and farming experience during a two-week visit to the Mississippi State University in America. One of her proud possessions is a framed photo where she was photographed with American President George Bush in Washington.

Paulina is also a very good job provider to the local community. She also farms with cattle and goats to help stock her butchery in Nzhelele with fresh meat. She is very proud of the fact that the farm’s success comes without the help of the government and she herself dislikes politicians, because, she says, they only waste her valuable time.