Land Reform in South Africa. Getting back on track

May 2008
Centre for Development and Enterprise Research Report 16

Includes case studies: land market dynamics and land reform in Western Cape, Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, and Mpumalanga; current government programmes and policies; South Africa’s land market and land reform; private sector contributions to land reform; 3 agri-business sectors and land reform – fruit, timber, sugar; research conclusions: key challenges to land reform now; where are we now, and where are we heading?; getting back on track: CDE’s recommendations. Of considerable concern that the Director-General of Land Affairs recently said that at least 50% of government land reform projects have failed to make their beneficiaries permanently better off. Much empirical evidence to show that the private sector and markets make major contributions to South Africa’s development in general and to land reform in particular. CDE believes it is vital to understand private sector perspectives on land reform and that the positive role of the private sector in land reform can and should be expanded.