On 17 November 2025, the Department of Community Extension pulled off a massive feat; hosted some leading organisations in the field of Agriculture. The department’s Professor Xolile Mkhize said the objective of the workshop was to bring together key partners to strengthen fresh-produce market access, clarify agent regulations for local farmers, and explore student entrepreneurial opportunities in collaboration with the Agricultural Produce Agents Council (APAC), the National Department of Agriculture and the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD).
Professor Mkhize said that the initiative forms part of their broader programme-development efforts to align the curriculum with national priorities for agricultural transformation and to support the upscaling of the extension profession in its contribution to food systems transformation.
Professor Mkhize said the meeting was their engagement with national and provincial Departments of Agriculture to strengthen district-level coordination within extension and advisory services. She added that Advanced Diploma students from Community Extension played a key role in this workshop as part of strengthening their contribution to the youth agricultural.
Explaining how the workshop was going to influence their teaching programme, and the level of knowledge their students are going to acquire, Professor Mkhize said that the workshop was “grounded and aligned with the programme’s core focus on equipping future extension practitioners to support farmers in navigating market regulations. As outgoing students (future extension practitioners), their participation is crucial in providing them with practical, direct exposure to key stakeholders, real market dynamics, and emerging entrepreneurial.”
The department’s interactions with all stakeholders also enabled districts to deepen their understanding of market dynamics and recognise the strategic value of the stakeholders present, including opportunities for market expansion and exports.
The Dean of the Faculty of Applied and Health Sciences, Professor Alfred Msomi, suggested that a coordinating body, comprising staff from academia and public and private organisations, be established to coordinate all the suggested activities. There were a lot of suggestions and requests from the different stakeholders; “all this needs to be pulled together, organised, so decisions could be made from an informed position,” said Professor Msomi.