Land Audit: A Transactions Approach

November 2017
Agri SA

A land audit responding to the facts that policy formulation around the very sensitive and complex issue of land has been based on perception rather than fact for too long and that no reliable figures on land ownership in South Africa exist. Acknowledges that there are still some gaps in the data, but presents statistics that  shed light on ownership patterns of agricultural land in South Africa. Required a multi-pronged approach. The amount of agricultural land has decreased from approximately 79.3% in 1994 to 76.3% in 2016. Land ownership by Previously Disadvantaged Individuals has increased significantly from 14.9% in 1994 to 29.1% in 2016. The setting of government targets on land reform has created expectations but there was no way to measure whether these targets were being achieved as no comprehensive land audit was done. This audit should provide a foundation.