PETER SETOU: Land reform is a huge undertaking requiring innovative solutions

The land reform programme in SA is making steady progress despite pressure on budgetary allocations, which have been affected by sluggish economic growth and declining tax revenues. On Wednesday, finance minister Enoch Godongwana announced that the fiscus would allocate R6bn over the medium-term expenditure framework (MTEF) to support resettled farmers through land redistribution and tenure reform programmes.

Providing a detailed breakdown of how the budget will be disbursed, the Treasury highlighted that R3.687bn will be earmarked for farmer support and development in the 2024/25 financial year, slightly more than the R3.683bn allocated in the 2023/24 financial year.

A total of R3.947bn has been reserved for restitution in the 2024/25 financial year, up from R3.818bn in the 2023/24 financial year. In addition, R1.113bn has been budgeted for land reform and R1.203bn has been provisioned for the agricultural land holding account. This represents a slight increase from the R1.159bn allocated in the 2023/24 budget.

Having worked with beneficiaries of the land reform programme since 2012 we believe providing tailored and effective post-settlement support is crucial for anchoring the programme's success. When examining the budgetary allocations for the land reform programme, three critical issues come to mind:

• It is important to reflect on the historic fiscus funding for land reform, redistribution, restitution, and, most importantly, post-settlement support.
• It is instructive to break down how the R6bn war chest for land reform will be spent.
• We should closely examine the efficacy of post-settlement support provided to beneficiary communities and ascertain whether it can be quantified and translated into tangible benefits for claimant communities; and in turn, broadly contribute to economic development.

The budgetary allocations to finance land reform have been steadily decreasing due to SA's lacklustre economic performance. In 2021 the Treasury allocated R896.7m to the department of agriculture, land reform and rural development to fund post-settlement support, an area that has consistently contributed to the high failure rate of the land reform programme.

In the 2022/23 budget the department received a budget of R17.5bn, part of which was allocated to fund the land reform programme. In his 2023 budget speech, the finance minister allocated R12.5bn over the MTEF period. About R1.126bn was budgeted for land reform, marking an increase from the R1.111bn allocated in the 2021/22 financial year.

In the 2022/23 financial year the budget allocation for restitution increased from R3.49bn to R3.664bn, representing an average annual MTEF growth of 4.6%. Furthermore, to ensure sustainable development and social justice government has allocated R14.6bn for land reform and restitution, and R6.8bn towards blended finance programmes, farmer development and post-settlement support initiatives.

In the upcoming financial year, only R6bn has been allocated for land reform. While this amount may seem negligible, considering the current economic challenges these funds can have a significant impact if used efficaciously.

It is encouraging that the Treasury shares our conviction regarding the importance of providing post-settlement support to land reform beneficiaries. However, it is not enough for the state to process land restitution applications, purchase the land on behalf of the claimant community and then leave them to their own devices. There is ample anecdotal evidence of such land degenerating and becoming unproductive due to a lack of access to finance, markets, and skills by the new land occupants.

Post-settlement support for beneficiary communities in the land reform programme remains crucial and cannot be overstated. Extensive research, empirical evidence and recommendations, including those from the Motlanthe Panel, emphasise that simply providing funds for land reform will not make land productive.

Skills are crucial, access to markets plays a fundamental role in the land reform value chain, and capacity building interventions and experiences of commercial farmers should be harnessed to equip beneficiary communities with the necessary knowledge they need to make their land productive and profitable. Land reform is too important to be allowed to falter, given its political, economic, social and moral implications.

A few days ago minister Thoko Didiza presented the research findings on the land restitution programme conducted by her department in partnership with the Southern African Labour and Development Research Unit at the University of Cape Town and the International Initiative for Impact Evaluation. Among other findings, Didiza shared how the government is working on equipping beneficiaries of land reform with relevant skills and providing mentorship opportunities to enhance their capacity to manage and use their land assets effectively, thereby fostering sustainable livelihoods and economic empowerment.

She emphasised that these initiatives underscore the government's commitment to ensuring that beneficiaries have the necessary tools and resources to thrive beyond the initial settlement phase, contributing to the long-term success of land reform initiatives and broader socioeconomic development goals. Government should fulfil this noble mandate as beneficiaries have been waiting too long to see the fruits of their land yield.

Some of the efforts made by the government to support land restitution programmes are commendable, but it is equally important to implement measures to monitor and measure the effectiveness of these programmes. It is necessary to ensure that the funds allocated to these programmes are not misappropriated or spent wastefully. Governance and adherence to strict corporate governance principles should be non-negotiable.

The land reform programme is an enormous undertaking that is unprecedented in SA. The process has been characterised by mishaps, but equally by innovative solutions that can be adapted, replicated and scaled for the benefit of the claimant communities. The insights gleaned by organisations such as Vumelana and other nonprofit organisations working in this space, coupled with the lessons and reflections from academia, can go a long way in changing the discourse on the land reform programme.

There is no need to reinvent the wheel in effecting improvements in land reform. Closer collaboration and support for organisations such as Vumelana, which have been supporting land reform beneficiaries, are critical to ensure effective and targeted post-settlement support. A further key ingredient that is currently lacking is the development and implementation of close monitoring of the support funds, as well as the unified application of systems and processes that will enable the efficacy of these post-settlement interventions to be measured and quantified.

• Setou is CEO of Vumelana Advisory Fund.