Land reform is key in undoing the legacy of Apartheid 

Note to Editors: the following statement was distributed at a press conference launching the DA's Land Reform Green Paper in Parliament today hosted by the DA Parliamentary Leader, Lindiwe Mazibuko MP, DA Shadow Minister of Rural Development and Land Reform, Mpowele Swathe MP, and the DA Shadow Deputy Minister of Rural Development and Land Reform, Kevin Mileham MP. The full Green Paper is available here.

As part of the Know Your DA Phase 2 Campaign, the Democratic Alliance has launched three key policies which communicate our commitment to redress and reconciliation in South Africa. For too long our opponents have misrepresented what the DA stands for. Therefore the purpose of this campaign has been to set the record straight in our attempts in redressing the legacy of Apartheid.

We have launched our Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment Policy and our Social Protection Policy, both of which have been well received by South Africans. 

Today, as we commemorate the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, established by the United Nations and observed since 1993, we are launching our Policy on Land Reform. 

It is important to state outright that the DA unequivocally supports land reform. We believe that this process must promote economic inclusion, lift people out of poverty and support growth and prosperity in the agricultural sector. 

This year marks the centenary of the 1913 Native Land Act, considered one of the "original sins" of apartheid, which prohibited black South Africans from purchasing or leasing land outside the reserves dispossessing many of our people. 

This is why we need a land reform and restitution process that is not hamstrung by policy uncertainty, lack of political will and the absence of decisive leadership under President Jacob Zuma. 

Therefore in the DA's Green Paper on Land Reform, we outline a comprehensive plan to drive the much needed reform in South Africa so that we may take greater strides in undoing the injustices of the past. 

The DA's approach to Land Reform:

We identify with the National Development Plan (NDP) which highlights the unacceptably insufficient tenure security of black farmers in communal areas as the "first major risk" to be objective of building inclusive rural economies.

The restitution and reform processes to date has been too slow, it has not provided sufficient support for reform and restitution beneficiaries to build livelihoods on land, and the money allocated to reform programmes has not been used effectively. 

The ANC government has only managed to transfer around 7% of agricultural land through their reform process. There are indications that the private sector may have transferred up to five times this much and that they money that has gone into the land reform budget should have allowed for a much greater transfer of land. 

We need a fresh approach, an approach that makes the agricultural sector a partner in rural transformation and an approach that addresses real land needs.

The DA's policy on Land Reform will focus on: 

Broadening the focus of land reform to address urban land pressures: 

Land reform in South Africa has been primarily focused on the redistribution of agricultural land in rural areas. South Africa is, however, an urbanising society. The percentage of the population living in urban areas has increased from 52% in 1990 to almost 62% by 2010. This figure is likely to continue to increase. 

Whilst there is an undeniable need to make rural economies more inclusive and address the consequences of apartheid legislation on land ownership in rural areas, the national approach to land reform must take cognisance of urban land pressures. 

In national government, the DA will alleviate pressures around urban land through the following: 

Speeding up the expansion of housing opportunities by providing serviced plots close to urban centres;

Increasing security of tenure in informal areas by ensuring that every new home owner receives a title deed to their property and by scrapping the current 8-year limit on the resale of subsidised housing (reducing it to two years);

Introduce a subsidy programme aimed at the low-income gap housing market to assist those who do not qualify for RDP housing to gain access to bank loans; and 

Make state land available for urban densification. 

Prioritising tenure security in communal land areas:

Approximately 21 million South Africans live on 17% of the country's total farmland area. Yet the majority of our people do not enjoy security of tenure, meaning they are unable to use their land for economic value. 

In addressing this, a national DA government would pursue programmes that allow citizens in the former homelands to enjoy security of tenure on the land on which they live and farm. This can be achieved by, in addition to other measures: 

Demarcating communal land areas as municipalities governed by the Municipal Systems Act;

Distinguish between the administrative duties of tribal chiefs and their direct role in allocating land use rights in communal land areas;

Urgently initiate procedures to address the legislative vacuum with regard to tenure security in communal land areas; and

Release state-owned land in the former homelands for reform purposes. 

Re-thinking land reform targets: 

Government has set a goal of redistributing 30% of white-owned agricultural land to black South Africans through redistribution and restitution programmes. 

This target however, does not factor in the quality of land that is to be distributed and places no obligation on the state to ensure that recipients of this land are equipped to operate sustainable agricultural businesses or improve their livelihoods.

Furthermore, this target does not take into account that some beneficiaries would prefer financial compensation rather than land. 

To mitigate this, a national DA government will develop alternative means to measure the success of land reform programmes such as:

Transfers of state land; 

Land transfers through private transactions; 

A land-equivalent of restitution claims in which financial compensation was awarded; and

Communal land on which tenure is secured.

Growing the agricultural sector and keeping land productive:

The DA recognises that the agricultural sector will need to increase its output significantly in order to ensure food security. 

This is why we will work to create an enabling environment for inclusive agricultural growth that supports local food security. We will also avoid, wherever possible, putting productive land in the hands of the state.

In national government, the DA will:

Ensure that new farmers receive appropriate support to navigate this complex market landscape;

Provide the water, road and transport infrastructure needed for the sector to thrive; 

Invest in training and education for agriculture;

Improve disaster risk management system for agriculture; and

Ensure that productive land is transferred to beneficiaries who are ready to manage it effectively, and avoid situations where it is warehoused by the state. 

Using land reform models that work:

The DA will promote the use of successful models for land redistribution in order to ensure effective redistribution to the people of South Africa.

These models include: 

Co- operatives and Joint ventures: Partnerships between established and emerging farmers so as to match new farmers with skilled and experienced agri-business practitioners; 

Contract farming: Land reform beneficiaries can generate significant income from their land by allowing other farmers or firms to use their land on a contract basis; and

Farm equity schemes: These schemes allow the complex business models that modern commercial farming requires to be competitive to be maintained while diversifying ownership and promoting economic inclusion. Around 90% of equity schemes in the Western Cape are deemed to be successful. 

Prioritising appropriate support:

The challenge of meeting land reform targets that are ill-conceived mean that training and support to land reform beneficiaries has often been neglected. This leads to unproductive use of redistributed land- defeating the very purpose of land reform. 

To ensure that appropriate support is provided to land reform beneficiaries the DA will: 

Invest in the expansion of agricultural training, including more agricultural schools, colleges and practical training programmes presented at community level;

Offer rebates on loans from public institutions (such as the Land Bank) to farmers and agri-businesses participating in mentorship programmes;

Reserve a portion of funding for every project for capital and infrastructure investment; and

Recognise the value that non-government stakeholders, including organised agriculture and civil society organisations with an interest in land reform, can add in the land reform process.

Establishing an institutional framework for successful land reform:

The Department of Rural Development recognises its lack of capacity in implementing successful reform which contributed to the unacceptably slow turnover rate in land audits; however it does not provide a strategy for addressing this. 

In national government, the DA will:

Conduct a full audit of capacity and skills shortages in national and provincial departments of Agriculture, Rural Development and Land Reform;

Set up a dedicated national budget for the provision of infrastructure and services in land reform areas;

Make better use of private sector partnerships in identifying and acquiring land for distribution; and

Make effective use of an electronic system in managing land restitution claims and land redistribution transactions to ensure easy access to records.

Our approach to land reform seeks to promote redress, reconciliation and undoing the effects of the 1913 Land Act.

The DA remains committed to ensuring that where we govern, we implement successful land reform projects that ensure that beneficiaries are able to use that land productively and lift themselves out of poverty. 

When in government, we will ensure that our land reform policy is premised upon a vibrant, inclusive rural economy that can contribute to economic growth, create jobs and help to alleviate poverty in South Africa.

This is the essence of the DA's vision of an Open Opportunity Society and will remain a key priority of all DA governments.

Statement issued by Lindiwe Mazibuko MP, DA Parliamentary Leader, October 17 2013

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