Skills training workshops as a viable strategy for improving smallholder and cooperative agribusiness management : a case study of Vhembe District, Limpopo Province, South Africa

Abstract

Workshop training is often seen as an instrument of knowledge transfer and skills development in modern society. This paper assesses the impact of Africare-sponsored agribusiness workshops, directed at community and cooperative agribusiness projects in Vhembe District of Limpopo Province, South Africa. Empirical evidence from this study shows that six months after attending the workshops, project managers introduced positive changes in the personnel and financial management of their projects, and increased the volume and value of their projects outputs. They also undertook new investments, obtained new loans and achieved substantial increases in the monthly projects' incomes. Thus, the study demonstrates that well-targeted skills' training, based on five to seven day workshops could be a viable strategy for improving agribusiness management and productivity in rural community projects in South Africa.