The right kind of land reform: lessons from South Africa

Millions of people were made landless in South Africa during the apartheid years up to 1994. Restoring land to these people is an important part of providing justice. Policymakers should fully understand the case for land reform, and recognise its potential for contributing to sustainable livelihoods and sustainable development.

The democratically elected African National Congress government that came to power with the end of apartheid in 1994 prioritised land reform. This was to take place through return of land or compensation to those who lost land during the apartheid regime; redistribution of land to enable citizens to gain access to land fairly; and reform of land tenure to provide security for all South Africans.

A joint paper from Cardiff University in the UK and Stellenbosch and Witwatersrand universities in South Africa examines the process of land reform and arguments for and against it on the basis of the South African experience since 1994. The pace at which land reform is being implemented is very slow: just 13 percent of the 3.5 million people who lost their land in the apartheid years have had their land restored to them or have received compensation. Some of the legislation designed to give people secure tenancy rights has actually resulted in people being evicted from their land.

Despite these setbacks, the authors find that:

• Land reform is necessary for the social justice vital to sustainable development, and can also support sustainable livelihoods.
• The benefits of land reform are not limited to the rural poor, as urban agriculture can increase the food supply and improve people’s incomes.
• Legislation which has actually increased landlessness is not true land reform but ‘so-called land reform’ aiming to increase efficiency and productivity.
• Arguments against land reform in South Africa are inconclusive, limited and based on the failures of ‘so-called land reform’. These arguments stress the need for efficiency, but ignore other important goals such as social justice and the eradication of poverty.
• The consequences of not implementing land reform in South Africa will be political unrest and ecological damage.

Drawing on the South African experience, the authors recommend that all developing countries addressing land reform ensure that:

• land reform does not lead to new forms of oppression, discrimination, fraud or increased poverty
• policies are carried out with the full and informed consent of all groups affected, including rural women
• there is a fully integrated approach to land reform, including appropriate forms of land-holding (individual holdings or some form of communal ownership) combined with  services and support (credit, irrigation, advice, education, primary health care)
• alternatives such as provision of education or employment are also considered along with land reform
• policymakers distinguish between processes of land reform which enhance land security and reduce landlessness, and processes of ‘so-called land reform’, which may have the opposite effect.

Source(s):
‘Sustainable Development, Sustainable Livelihoods and Land Reform in South Africa: A Conceptual and Ethical Inquiry’ by Robin Attfield, Johan Hattingh and Manamela Matshabaphala, Third World Quarterly, Vol. 25, No. 2, 2004, 405-421

id21 Research Highlight: 5 May 2005

Further Information:
Robin Attfield
School of English, Communication and Philosophy
Cardiff University
Humanities building
PO Box 94
Column Drive
Cardiff CF10 3 XB
UK

Tel: +44 (0) 292087 4025
Fax: +44 (0) 292087 4618
Contact the contributor: AttfieldR@cf.ac.uk

Cardiff University

Johan Hattinngh
Unit for Environmental Ethics
Department of Philosophy
University of Stellenbosch
7600 Stellenbosch
Republic of South Africa

Tel: 027 (0) 21 808 2418
Fax: 027 (0) 21 808 3556
Contact the contributor: jph2@sun.ac.uk

University of Stellenbosch, South Africa

Manamela Matshabaphala
Graduate School of Public Policy and Development Management
University of Witwatersrand
PO Box 601
Wits 2050
Republic of South Africa

Tel: +27 (0) 11 717 3562
Fax: +27 (0) 11 484 2729
Contact the contributor: Matshabaphala.M@pdm.wits.ac.za

University of Witwatersrand, South Africa

Other related links:
'Can land redistribution policies promote rural growth?'

'Guest Editorial: Governing poverty in the new South Africa and beyond'

'Land reform in Zimbabwe – good for poor black farmers?'

'The crisis of land distribution in Southern Africa'

'Safe as houses? Securing urban land tenure and property rights'

'IRIN Web Special on land reform in Southern Africa'