We just streamlined a couple of things and made it easier for you to have checks done – see services – checks to see how easy it has become.

Welcome to AgriStays, PlaasPlekke and PlaasPlasings. Help us to protect the South African countryside!

This is a website for South Africans by South Africans.

South Africans see so much violence every day that news of a murder, rape or kidnapping affects few people unless they are direct relatives or acquaintances.

It is especially our farmers who are being murdered at an alarming rate. The countryside is being depopulated because of fear of crime. The brave farmers left behind are constantly terrorized with attacks, not just on themselves and their relatives, but their labourers are also murdered. Their cattle are stolen, slaughtered and mutilated. Crops on land and in stores are burned down. Buildings are burned down. Properties are illegally occupied. Vehicles and equipment are being stolen.

The purpose of this page is just one of many attempts made by various people and organizations to protect our farmers, their employees and property through attempts to populate the countryside.

How do we work in our effort to populate and secure the countryside? We do the following:

    1. We let farmers and residents of rural areas advertise on this page should they need any help (volunteers, employees, contract workers and seasonal workers, etc.) on their farm, smallholding or town. Ads are free, what’s more, we offer the facility to scan your final candidate for criminal offences (we highly recommend this), PSIRA qualifications (if required), driver’s licenses and/or public driver’s licenses (if required) creditworthiness (if necessary, eg posts where books must be managed or major financial transactions have to be entered into), as well as various other qualifications as requested – there are costs associated with all scans. For all scans, candidates must complete a permission form and return to us. For criminal offences, candidates must also visit one of our partner branches that can be found in most cities and some towns in South Africa.
    2.  There are many citizens who sit on the street and have no jobs and/or homes. Some of these people are willing to live in rural areas for minimal reimbursement (sometimes no compensation) for a roof over their head (and sometimes a meal they could not provide themselves). Many are even willing to work in return for this at minimal compensation. We try to get housing for these people by allowing them to place free ads here. If you can help, we suggest, for your safety, that you are still using the scanning procedures mentioned in point 1. Unfortunately, many of these people will not be able to bear the costs of a scan. The costs will, therefore, have to be borne by the person who offers accommodation and employment. AgriStays will later implement a pay-it-forward system where costs of these scans may be partially or fully sponsored.
    3. There are many campers (mostly from cities) who are often looking for camping or accommodation places in rural areas for weekends, holidays and long term. Many of these people have empathy with farmers and would like to go set up camp where they can contribute to the security of rural areas through their presence. We are in the early stages of this project and we are urgently looking for farmers and residents of rural areas (even people in towns and cities who feel they can benefit from this) who can provide accommodation from very basic, more luxury camping and holiday accommodation, short-term to long-term. In this case, we strongly recommend that all persons who provide accommodation be scanned by our systems for at least criminal offences as mentioned in Point 1. This will be to your benefit by putting the mind of the applicant at ease. There are simply too many cases of human trafficking and abuse to simply trust all “well-doers”. These costs will be paid by the person seeking accommodation.
    4. There are many campers (mostly from cities) who are often looking for camping places in rural areas for weekends, holidays and long term. If you are one of these people and have empathy with farmers and would like to go camp where you can contribute to the security of rural areas through your presence, you are welcome to place your needs here. In this case, it is a requirement that you are scanned by our systems for at least criminal offences as mentioned in Point 1. These costs will be paid by the person seeking accommodation. As residence is limited, these applications will be limited until suitable accommodation is readily available – so your application is not guaranteed to be successful. You do not have to make a payment unless your application has been approved.

Why do we believe that the above steps can help secure our countryside? We are not experts in the field of security, but we are confident that greater presence, more movement, routine deviations and preparedness will contribute as deterrents. Our efforts make use of these basic steps, with the scanning of those involved, as a means of security.