SIKONATHI MANTSHANTSHA: The trouble with communal land ownership
It is no coincidence that the poorest parts of SA are the rural areas, where land ownership is communal
The land along the border between SA and Lesotho, running down through the Free State and Eastern Cape, is some of the most beautiful real estate in the country. The dramatic features of the mountains, the deep gorges and grass-covered, snow-laden hilltops almost kissing the blue sky make the rugged terrain in the area from Zastron, through Aliwal North, Barkly East and Elliot, all the way to Ugie in the south, even lovelier. In the distance, sleepy Basotho villages built of stone add to the scenery for the wandering eye. A sight to behold. This prime real estate becomes even more beautiful for other practical reasons: the area is scarcely inhabited. Cattle, sheep and maize farms are the lifeblood of the economy here. There is order in how the land is inhabited and used. Small villages are neatly clustered on the edges of commercial farms. As you drive on further down into the old Transkei the population, obviously too big for the land mass, is spread on the rolling hills, as far as...
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