LAND REFORM ISSUES IN SOUTH AFRICA Trevor Hill Discipline of Geography, UNP

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LAND REFORM ISSUES IN SOUTH AFRICATrevor
HillDiscipline of Geography, UNP
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Outline of Presentation

• Introduction to Land Reform
• Land Reform in Context
• What has gone Wrong?
• New Approaches
• Kwa-Zulu Natal Experience
• Case Studies
• Challenges and Lessons
• Land Reform Conclusions and Way Ahead

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Introduction

• National Program that highlights the plight of
  the rural poor
• Issues of land redistribution, restitution and
  tenure
• multifaceted and trans-disciplinary
• Linked to environmental, economic, agricultural
  issues and concerns of sustainability
• Sustainability of what? Land/economics/social
  structures/projects/environment
• Very ambitious, rapid and a strong need to
  succeed
• Reality versus political aspirations
• Great to be part of and watch process unfold!
• Dynamic, transparent and appropriate to the
  healing process of the country

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What we see in the press!
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Land Reform in Context

• Seen against inherited system
• Initial rush to succeed - good politics rather
  than good environmental and socio-economic
• Inclusion of strategies such as LED and SDI
• Involvement of all relevant stakeholders -
  particularly recipient communities
• Commenced 1994, target of 30 agriculture land
• At present 1 agricultural land returned -
  great concern!

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What has gone Wrong?

• Large bureaucracy and slow delivery
• Release of State owned land very tedious and slow
• Minimizing role of government was not successful
• Insufficient follow-up and evaluation/monitoring
  process
• To emotive-driven and reactive, rather than
  proactive, in approach
• Reality versus political need
• Focus on poorest of the poor not successful
• Has not created the desired class of
  independent and viable small-scale farms/farmers
• Issue of small-scale versus commercial ventures
• Perception of turning commercially viable and
  sustainable land into resettlement schemes.

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New Approach

• Acknowledge importance of commercial farming as
  stimulus for rural development
• Attempt to create more income-generating
  opportunities for rural communities - Business
  plans, LED strategies, SDI initiatives
• Other form of growth other than agriculture
  sector to help rural development and upliftment
• Cognizance of job creating needs
• Establish class of commercial black farmers
• Better planned and co-ordinated
• Development of support services seen as critical
  to successful implementation
• Empowerment of farmers and promote local economic
  activities

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Kwa-Zulu Natal Experience

• 5 years of experience, controlled by DLA
• Approx. 14 000 claims to date
• Key objective is to ensure land tenure, land
  distribution to those historically deprived of
  land and improve access to land acquisition
• Parallel to policy formulation - good evaluation
  opportunity
• Large percentage of rural people in the region
• People (and communities) lack tenure and property
  rights
• Polarization of farm owners and workers
• Tribal boundaries have complex historical roots
  and customs

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Case Studies Isibonelo Community

• Concept of an agri-village
• 38 households, 178 people, 118 ha. of farm land
• Land laid out as a rural village
• Secure land tenure for farm workers, productive
  land, provision of services and infrastructure
• Perceived as not just a dumping ground and
  removal of problem farm workers from the land
• Decision to help versus self-preservation by
  farmers?
• Loss of symbiotic relationship with former
  farmer
• Can community make a go of it?
• Subsistence rather than commercial venture at
  present
• Must be sustainable and not quick-fix
• Conflict with neighbouring govt. sponsored
  schemes in the region

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Case Studies Entabeni Redistribution Project

• Concern regarding security of tenure on farm land
  for farm workers served eviction papers
• Conflict in region and a number of eviction
  orders served
• Community refused papers and started
  negotiations, through a NGO, with the farmer
  owner
• Successful and brought a portion of the land on
  which they resided
• However, land was not large enough and a new
  process of selecting land to be undertaken -
  further conflict!
• Reduction of stocking units also required -
  further conflict!
• Issue of obtaining reticulated water and
  electricity as now going it alone
• Attempt to generate economy through small-scale
  economic activities and enterprises
• Community felt strong need for empowerment and
  external funding
• Input from mobile phone company has helped -
  short-term!

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Case Studies amaSwazi Redistribution Project

• Different in context as this was a tribal issue
• Fled Swaziland mid-1800s, settled on South
  African farmland and became farm tenants
• Dispossessed in 1960s when land was demarcated
  as conservation land
• Temporary resettlement in SA Development Trust
  land neighbouring the amaNgwana Tribal Authority
• Conflict arose and amaSwazi fled
• Govt. been involved in negotiating for land for
  the tribe since 1994
• March 1998 land brought and resettlement
  commenced
• Many issues arise from this example who should
  get land, relationships between
  communities/tribes, historical context,
  individual versus community ownership,
  integration with local TLCs, creation of an
  enclave of people

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Challenges and Lessons

• High demand for restitutive land
• Slow delivery and dispersal of State land
• Conflict and tribalisation of land reform
• Limited options for sustainable land reform
• Limited inter-government co-operation
• High level of government centralization
• Limits to agriculture and economic viability
• Question viability and sustainability of projects
• Need greater integration into socio-economic
  development
• Role of regional councils and new TLC demarcation
• Need credibility with community and
  representatives
• Lack capacity for implementation and monitoring
• Develop with creative and proactive opportunities
• Land reform alone is not enough!

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Discussion

• Turning crisis driven into proactive project
  identification and prioritization
• Balancing long-term planning with responsiveness
  to present needs
• Developing new models of delivery
• Leveraging additional support and services
• Development of capacity of communities in
  processes
• Land reform part of the regional planning process
  - integrated regional development strategy
• Unblock, unbundle and rationalize the disposal of
  State land
• Recognize need to monitor and evaluate process -
  use of PRA/PIM
• Must be proactive and create a sense of
  self-worth through empowerment and transparency
• Community part of process and co-construction of
  a way forward
• Strong call for development and inclusion of LED
  projects
• Issue of willing seller-willing buyer not
  adequate

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Conclusions

• Question of providing land for the people or
  providing a living for people on the land - can
  they go hand-in-hand or be developed in parallel
  or to the exclusion of each other
• Land alone is not sufficient!
• We have to have rural upliftment and development
  for betterment of rural communities, the
  environment, the economy and our social
  structures
• Present emphasis is on land restitution - could
  be avoiding the real issue
• Is it rights-based as opposed to
  opportunity-based?
• Need to be clear on the viable commercial use of
  agriculture land and weight it against real need
  of land reform in South Africa.