Objectives

The primary objective of this tender is to appoint a qualified service provider to conduct a comprehensive aerial survey and mapping of agricultural commodity production and infrastructure across Limpopo Province for a period of 12 months. The project aims to develop an accurate, current, and georeferenced dataset of agricultural activities, infrastructure, and land use changes to support departmental planning, resource allocation, monitoring, and policy development. The outputs will facilitate commodity-specific analysis, land-use trend monitoring, infrastructure planning, climate resilience initiatives, and evidence-based decision-making aligned with provincial and national agricultural priorities.

Scope

The scope encompasses:

• Design and implement aerial and field surveys during summer and winter seasons.
• Capture spatial data on crops (including horticultural, agronomic, industrial, and subtropical crops), livestock systems, and associated infrastructure such as irrigation, marketing, and input supply facilities.
• Map and geo-reference on-farm infrastructure (e.g., silos, abattoirs, packhouses, animal facilities).
• Analyze and report on crop areas, yields, commodity values, land-use changes, and infrastructure status.
• Establish an integrated GIS-enabled database for spatial and non-spatial data management.
• Engage with stakeholders to gather insights on emerging commodities and production challenges.
• Ensure data harmonization across survey iterations for comparability.
• Support capacity building and knowledge transfer to LDARD officials.

Technical Requirements

The technical scope includes:

• Use of high-resolution satellite imagery (Sentinel 2, LANDSAT 8) complemented by aerial surveys using light aircraft/helicopters.
• Deployment of qualified GISc professionals, remote sensing specialists, crop scientists, animal scientists, and survey coordinators.
• Provision of professional pilots certified by SACAA, data capturers, and GIS technicians.
• Adherence to LDARD GIS data standards, SASQAF operational standards, and NSIF guidelines.
• Preparation of detailed project methodology, implementation plans, and regular progress reports.
• Provision of source imagery and background datasets on high-speed external storage.
• Compliance with aviation regulations, safety standards, and POPIA requirements.
• Delivery of geospatial datasets, maps, analytical reports, and comprehensive sector plans.

Skills Requirements

The project demands a multidisciplinary team with the following expertise:

• Project Manager / Team Leader: Overall coordination, stakeholder management, reporting, and quality assurance.
• GIS Professionals (Registered SAGC): Spatial data management, geodatabase development, GIS mapping, and GIS-based analysis.
• Remote Sensing Specialist: Satellite imagery analysis, land-use change detection, crop identification.
• Agricultural Scientists: Crop and livestock production analysis, crop calendar development, validation of production data.
• Animal Scientists / Livestock Experts: Mapping and analysis of livestock systems and grazing patterns.
• Economists: Commodity valuation, value chain analysis, economic contribution assessment.
• Field Survey Coordinators: Ground truthing, stakeholder engagement, data verification.
• GIS Technicians/Data Capturers: Digitizing field data, validating spatial datasets.
• Aerial Survey Pilots (SACAA compliant): Conducting aerial flights for crop and infrastructure mapping.
• Data Analysts / Statisticians: Data processing, trend analysis, reporting.

All team members must possess relevant qualifications, professional registration where applicable, and experience in aerial surveys, GIS, remote sensing, and agricultural data analysis.