Beyond the Politics of Land Reform in South Africa and Challenges Ahead

• In Event: Geography, Migration and Climate

Abstract

Since the transition to democracy in 1994, land reform has been one of the most political socioeconomic structural challenges of post-apartheid South Africa. Land continues to be both economic and social capital needed to be integrated into the formal economic system. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the national challenges of food insecurity and unemployment, prompting increased expectations of and demand for land. The inequality of land distribution in South Africa is rooted in the 1913 Natives Land Act that reserved almost 93 percent of the land for about 10 percent white population. Despite the constitutive reforms and various amendments since 1994, 72 percent of farms and agricultural holdings are owned by whites, who make up 8.2 percent of the population. Black comprise 80.2 percent of the population and own 4 percent of the land. The “willing-seller, willing-buyer” land redistribution policy was seen as problematic. Consequently, in 2018, the policy was replaced with the Economic Freedom Fighters' proposal of expropriation without compensation. How could the policy shift provide a strategy to overcome the dual economic structure? This paper sets out to contribute to the ongoing debate by examining the challenges and how the policy shift would contribute to the inclusive socio-economic development of the country.

Author

• Patricia C. Agupusi, Worcester Polytechnic Institute