Eviction of black farmers raises questions about readiness for land reform
State lacks system for considering rights of occupiers and lessees, says land expert
The eviction of farmers from their profitable farming enterprises by “rogue officials” of the department of agriculture, rural development & land reform has resulted in claims of more than R2bn being instituted against the department, according to the 2019/2020 report of the auditor-general.
Farmers who have lost hundreds of thousands of rand as a result of the evictions told Business Day the “dubious eviction orders” go against the government’s plans to release 700,000ha of state land on 30-year leaseholds to black farmers. The 700,000ha is land acquired by the former SA government for the consolidation of the homelands and which, after 1994, remained in the hands of the central government...
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