Back new farmers

SIR — I concur with African National Congress (ANC) secretary-general Gwede Mantashe, who asserts that refraining from land grabs and backing new farmers with programmes and funding is vital to land reform and successful farming (Commercial farmers should expedite land reform — ANC, August 14).

The Department of Rural Development and Land Reform has enacted constructive programmes such as the Recapitalisation and Development Programme, to support farms with funds and skills. However, sharing, impartiality and cohesion among farmers and their workers remain key tenets to drive land reform.

We cannot run away from our shameful past. The depravity of apartheid’s legislation led to trenchant land grabs from Africans by whites, who were prodded to work on farms for minuscule wages while their white counterparts profited significantly.

The government has made acute strides to ameliorate the negative effects of apartheid. Through the initial land claims process, land and dignity have been restored to many communities, which have entered the farming milieu with government backing; they’ve gone on to make ends meet through working their land.

In my view, commercial farms are efficacious because of their farm workers, who are the core stakeholders in the running of farms.

Without their toil, the farms would not be profitable or productive. In this regard, commercial farm owners should be fair when it comes to profit sharing, especially to workers who have toiled for decades on their farms.

Let us all share the profit equally and fairly with the people who work the farming land. Lungelo Mkamba Pretoria