‘Zimbabwe-style land grabs not inconceivable’ 

The “pathetic” outcome of South Africa’s land reform programme and persistent poverty are creating such widespread dissatisfaction that land occupations similar to those seen in Zimbabwe after 2000 no longer seem inconceivable.

By Amelia Genis, senior journalist at African Farming and Landbouweekblad

This was the warning by Ben Cousins, emeritus professor and founder of the Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies (PLAAS), speaking at the recent Land, Life and Society conference at the University of the Western Cape.

He said the scale of inequality, along with the deepening livelihood crisis in both rural and urban areas, has led to such frustration that many people want to vote the ANC out of power – not necessarily because there are viable alternatives, but because dissatisfaction is so intense.

Cousins said people are gradually occupying land – not necessarily to farm it but because they are being promised cheap plots. “Farms are under threat. I believe a moment of land occupation à la Zimbabwe is not impossible.”

Also read: Land reform still falling short – Minister Nyhontso

Lack of Capacity, Political Will and Money

Cousins believes the lack of progress in land reform stems from the political settlement reached between the ANC and white-owned capital, which resulted in the adoption of a conservative, neo-liberal style of economic policy.

According to him, the groups that benefited most from the transition were the former white business class, a limited number of black business interests and the emerging black middle class.

A structural reality that is “difficult to acknowledge”, he noted, is that the majority of South Africa’s large rural population is not engaged in market-oriented farming. About a third of the country’s population lives in rural areas. Perhaps 2 million to 3 million people produce food for their own use, but most rely on external income sources such as government grants and remittances.

It’s part of the problem, he said. How do you redistribute land to people who are not interested in farming, are not capable of it or do not have the necessary skills?

Cousins added that there was also a lack of political will and insufficient capacity within government to make land reform a success. And the “tiny” budget for land reform consistently accounts for less than 0,4% of the national budget.

Also read: EXCLUSIVE: Land reform bottleneck hampering agricultural potential – Wandile Sihlobo

Little Support from Civil Society

Cousins believes one of the biggest obstacles is the absence of effective support from civil society for large-scale land redistribution. “It’s not as if this hasn’t been raised repeatedly by activists and NGOs, but we simply don’t have large, well-organised organisations capable of putting pressure on government.”

Land restitution and tenure reform dominated early policy debates, rather than the restructuring of agriculture through redistribution, Cousins said. Large-scale commercial farming systems were regarded as the only viable model for land reform, while many – including the ANC and black business leaders – viewed small-scale and subsistence farming, along with land tenure systems other than private ownership, as backward.

He considers it regrettable that civil society organisations focused on poverty alleviation were unable to influence government policy on land redistribution. “In that respect, conservative agricultural economists were far more successful.”

Similarly, none of the governments since 1994 has produced a clear policy statement outlining a vision for rural reform.

Also read: Land ownership in the Eastern Cape shifting from white to black

Brief Optimism from 2005 to 2007

Cousins said there was a period of hope about 20 years ago. The government of President Thabo Mbeki, between 2005 and 2007, began to think differently about land redistribution and acknowledged that earlier efforts had failed. But this was never followed up with real action.

Neither the 2005 Land Summit – attended by 1 000 delegates – nor the ANC’s resolution at its 2007 national conference to review market-based land reform produced meaningful change.

Even the Landless People’s Movement, founded in 2001, and other rural reform movements began to lose momentum after 2007. Shortly afterwards, Mbeki was replaced by Jacob Zuma, and the period of state capture began.