Development finance institutions need to get to work in SA
Despite the Land and Agricultural Development Act of 2002, the Land Bank still behaves more like a commercial bank than a DFI
SA has various development finance institutions (DFIs) mandated to contribute to economic development. The Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), the Development Bank of Southern Africa, the Land Bank, the National Empowerment Fund, and the Small Enterprise Finance Agency were geared to promote economic inclusion but have failed to produce a sizeable number of black entrepreneurs.
The Land Bank was established by the Land Bank Act of 1912, before the Land Act of 1913 was promulgated to extend credit support to Afrikaner farmers and commercialise farming co-operatives. The government created this mechanism to ameliorate harsh conditions visited upon many Afrikaners by the Anglo-Boer War and ensuing drought conditions. Heavy requirements for capital to engage in commercial farming was a challenge, as it is with black farmers today...
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