‘Western Cape reform too slow’
THE WESTERN Cape has the most lucrative agricultural economy in the country, but it has not been able to transform to allow equitable black participation.
This is according to the African Farmers Association of SA (Afasa), at its recent conference focused on the transformation of the sector.
The government and blacks cannot afford to purchase land in the province, as prices are the highest in the country, according to Afasa.
“With the understanding that blacks own only 1% of agricultural land in the Western Cape and that the entire value chain of the sector is white-owned, it then becomes prudent for us to talk about a land ceiling.
“All the best agricultural land and water is owned by whites. It is impossible to change ownership of the economy, if a land ceiling is not introduced.”
The association has proposed, among others, that land given to beneficiaries who have not farmed it for the past five years as part of the Land Redistribution for Agricultural Development, be expropriated.
Economic Opportunities MEC Alan Winde said the department of rural development and land reform had set aside a budget to purchase three farms in the Western Cape this year, but the slow pace of reform had continued.
Winde said while there was no reliable data regarding race and land ownership in South Africa, data across various studies had shown that nationally most of the private land was still owned by whites.
“Land reform has been slow. According to data presented in the latest Bureau of Food and Agricultural Policy report, of the 78 million hectares of farm land in South Africa just 10% has been allocated to beneficiaries via redistribution or restitution since 1994. A further 3.7% of land formed part of claims where communities settled for financial compensation.
“The Department of Agriculture’s role in land reform in the Western Cape is to provide support and assistance to beneficiaries of the national government’s land reform processes.
“We do this through what is called the ‘commodity approach’, where we partner with the commodity organisations to ensure that beneficiaries are supported through mentorship, receiving technical training and advice,” Winde said.