Prieska is a desert farming town in northern South Africa 's Cape Province . It was the site of Friday 's annual agricultural show . South Africa 's minister of agriculture is also a farmer . Kraii van Niekerk was campaigning in his constituency . This is virtually desert country where a farmer needs several thousand hectares and a drought- and heat-resistant breed of sheep to make a reasonable living. He was trying to persuade his fellow farmers to accept political reform and adopt his own farming techniques because of the drought . His platform is one of minimizing the number of farmers going bankrupt by offering loans , writing off debt and providing subsidies . To allow a large number of farms to fail would result in unemployment , thus exasperating the food problem .
Prieska is a desert farming town in northern South Africa 's Cape Province . It was the site of Friday 's annual agricultural show . South Africa 's minister of agriculture is also a farmer . Kraii van Niekerk was campaigning in his constituency . He was trying to persuade his fellow farmers to accept political reform and adopt his own farming techniques because of the drought . His platform is one of minimizing the number of farmers going bankrupt by offering loans , writing off debt and providing subsidies . To allow a large number of farms to fail would result in unemployment , thus exasperating the food problem .