Land reform elements fine-tuned

Legalbrief Policy Watch

Revised policies have been published on two key elements of land reform: State Land Lease and Disposal, and the Recapitalisation and Development Programme falling under government’s comprehensive rural development plan. They form part of a policy review process undertaken following the release in 2011 of the Green Paper on Land Reform. The revised policy for agricultural leases targets historically disadvantaged South Africans and is based on the creation of ‘developmental pathways’ for four different categories of prospective and emerging farmers. The policy for commercial development on state land is ‘non-protectionist’ and seeks to encourage private sector investment in the areas concerned. One of the strategic objectives of the policy on recapitalisation and development is to ‘significantly’ reduce the flow of people and resources from rural to urban areas.

Supplied by Harcourts