One of the key areas of work for the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) is releasing national State-owned land to support the aims of land redress. Provincial and local governments also own land that they are responsible for to distribute for land reform programmes and must account for.

Land redress is one of the key drivers to address the spatial and socio economic imbalances in our country and ensuring that public land is used for public good. The DPWI is often requested to release land for the land reform programme, including releasing land for human settlements development, land restitution and land redistribution. 

As a member of the Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) for Land Reform chaired by Deputy President, David Mabuza, last week we updated the IMC on the parcels of land released by DPWI in the 6th administration to date in support of the land reform programme. 

I am pleased to report as follows:
Land for Human Settlements:
Thus far, DPWI has released 2 556 hectares of land (44 parcels) to the Housing Development Agency (HDA) for human settlement development purposes. Power of Attorney for these parcels of land has been given to the HDA for development planning purposes. 

Over and above the release of the 44 land parcels, DPWI has also released an additional 17 land parcels measuring 533 hectares for human settlement purposes.

Land for socio economic purposes:
In support of infrastructure development, 15 hectares (11 land parcels) were approved for registration of servitude for roads, water, electricity and gas pipeline servitudes in this past financial year.

Land for Restitution:
DPWI has released 214 land parcels measuring 30 277 hectares for restitution. Last year’s target for restitution was 10 000 hectares and this was substantively exceeded. 

Land for Redistribution (Land Tenure): 
DPWI has released 25 549 hectares of agricultural land (125 parcels) for the Redistribution Programme. 

For this new financial year DPWI, the projected targets for release:

7 100 hectares in various provinces for human settlements development purposes.

180 hectares for socio economic purposes that will support the Eskom and SANRAL programmes.

154 745 hectares under land reform for restitution to support land ownership. This amounts to over 162 000 hectares targeted for release by DPWI nationally for the new financial year.

So far for the 2022/23 financial year, of the 162 000 hectares of land targeted for release, we have approved the release of the following:

Four parcels of land for human settlements in KwaZulu-Natal Province for residents affected by the flooding earlier this year

1539,3 hectares for Land reform

The need for land in our country is great and greater urgency needs to be put in by all spheres of government for this work of releasing land to achieve land reform and ensure that more public land is used for public good.

The DPWI updates the IMC on Land Reform on this work regularly and we will continue to work hard on our mandate to release national state owned land for land reform purposes. 

Issued by Zara Nicholson, Media Liaison Officer to Minister Patricia de Lille, 29 August 2022