JOHANNESBURG, June 27 (Xinhua) -- South African Trade and Industry Ministry officially launched R1 billion (78 million U.S. dollars) Agro-Processing Support Scheme (APSS) on Tuesday that aims at stimulating investment in related areas.
South African Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies launched the scheme at the Southern African International Trade Exhibition in Johannesburg. He said the scheme will support brown and greenfield investments, encourage investment in both upstream and downstream support services and for the expansion of infrastructure to be used by farmers and agro-processors.
"The APSS will target five key sub-sectors ranging from food and beverage value addition and processing (including black winemakers), furniture manufacturing, fiber processing, feed production and fertilizer production. It will be a cost-sharing grant towards funding agro-processing projects and it will be capped at R20 (about 1.56 million dollars) million over a two-year investment period, subject to availability of funds," said the minister.
"I would like to encourage companies with expertise in the sectors I have mentioned to participate in the program and engage with departmental officials, who will assist them with relevant information to ensure that they submit a successful application for funding," he added. Enditem
