LREAD

LREAD PERSPECTIVE- 2019 REFLECTION

Casidra2019-12-06T16:05:43+02:00And here we have arrived at the end of another year in South Africa! As usual, it was full of ups and downs, but that is all part of what makes our country so special. It was also an interesting year in terms of land reform activities. Here is a quick recap. Expropriation without Compensation (EWC), dominated the land discourse throughout the year. It was used as a main rallying call...

30 April 2019 – LAND REFORM ADVISORY DESK PERSPECTIVE

Casidra2019-05-07T16:52:27+02:00It is two weeks before the 2019 National Elections in South Africa and depending on where you stand, you may be excited or anxious about the outcome. Land reform, expropriation without compensation and changes to Section 25 of the Constitution were all topics regularly mentioned by many parties competing in the build up to this election. The land issue, as part of South Africa’s history, and the transformation project, as...

LREAD Perspective December 2018

Casidra2018-12-23T08:58:19+02:00Land reform has been on the centre stage throughout 2018, and with national elections coming in the first half of 2019, one can expect much more in the months to come. Populist phrases and concepts such as “Expropriation without Compensation” and “give back the land” rang loud and clear throughout the year. But there were also critical and analytical evaluations on land reform by thought leaders throughout the year. A good...

LREAD Perspective July 2018

Casidra2018-12-23T08:59:22+02:00Parliament is currently wrapping up public participation sessions throughout the country, which allowed ordinary South African citizens the opportunity to speak out on the proposal to amend Section 25 of the South African Constitution in order to allow for the expropriation of land without compensation. Some of these sessions have laid bare the raw emotion often accompanying discussions about land in our country. On the one hand, people are arguing that...

LREAD Perspective: Expropriation without compensation

Casidra2018-12-23T08:51:51+02:00Land expropriation without compensation is on everyone’s lips, since the EFF and the ANC proposed a Parliamentary Motion that could see the Constitution modified to allow for the expropriation of land without compensation. What does this mean for those affected? One would be naïve not to see the political machinations behind the motion: A partnership between the ANC and EFF could benefit the ANC, especially in the metro areas governed by...

LREAD Perspective November 2017

Casidra2018-11-09T08:27:59+02:00

The AgriSA Land Audit

AgriSA made public its much anticipated South African Land Audit this month. A lot has been said about agricultural land ownership in South Africa, but no credible statistics have been available to back up the various claims. The AgriSA Land Audit, done together with Media24 and economist Johann Bornman of Agri Development Solutions, is an attempt to provide accurate statistics and numbers to work with. As...

LREAD Perspective August 2017

Casidra2018-12-11T08:45:27+02:00

Talking is better than fighting

Why is talking better than fighting?  I used Google and came across the following insightful quote: “Discussions are always better than arguments, because an argument is always about who is right, and a discussion is to find out what is right”. This quote holds much truth for our land reform journey in South Africa. We seem to spend a lot of energy on...

LREAD Perspective May 2017

Casidra2018-12-11T08:45:38+02:00

Sharing is caring

The Nampo agricultural show, which took place in May in Bothaville, is one of the highlights on the South African agricultural calendar. First time attendees are always blown away by the scale of this event. The show attracted 78 648 visitors and 700 exhibitors this year.  It is also the place to come up close with the latest in farming technology. This year saw Senzeni...

LREAD Perspective June 2017

Casidra2018-11-09T08:35:07+02:00

Cyril Ramaphosa

Earlier in June I travelled to the Koue Bokkeveld to an event where Deputy President, Cyril Ramaphosa, was the guest speaker. True to the area’s name, it was a bitterly cold evening, with outside temperatures dropping to 5 Degrees Celsius on the Gydo pass, on route to the venue! The event was hosted by the Witzenberg Partnerships in Agri Land Solutions (PALS). PALS is a private...

LREAD Perspective April 2017

Casidra2018-11-09T08:35:14+02:00Counting Transformation. April 2017 saw the appointment of a Service Provider by the LREAD to establish a Baseline of black land ownership for Western Cape. The need for such a baseline has already been voiced in 2014 during the Provincial Land Reform Summit, an initiative of Western Cape Minister of Economic Opportunities, Alan Winde, where he identified land reform, or the lack thereof, as a real risk to the provincial...

LREAD Perspective March 2017

Casidra2018-11-09T08:35:19+02:00

Unintended Consequences

Gugile Nkwinti, Minister of Land Reform and Rural Development, announced the Regulation of Agricultural Land Holdings Bill earlier in March this year. The Bill is now open for comments from interested parties after which it will be presented to Parliament for promulgation as an Act. If successful in its current form, this Bill holds the potential to fundamentally alter the manner in which we look and think about...

LREAD Perspective February 2017

Casidra2018-11-09T08:29:30+02:00

Making sense of land reform in 2017 after the State of the Nation Address and Budget Speech.

During February 2017, we were offered 3 important perspectives from 3 prominent political leaders in South Africa on what the future might hold for our land reform project: The State of the Nation Address by President Zuma on the 9th of February. Subsequent statements from Minister of Rural Development and Land Reform,...

LREAD Perspective January 2017

Casidra2018-11-09T08:29:37+02:00

Land reform crystal ball for the year ahead

A new year with new challenges and opportunities awaits us as 2017 got underway this past January. Land reform issues already surfaced. President Zuma used his final official message of 2016 to speak about land reform. President Zuma called for “decisive action” and “meaningful progress” on land reform and restitution in 2017. President Zuma also mentioned the possibility of using...

LREAD Land reform perspective – October 2016

Casidra2018-12-23T08:51:45+02:00I recently attended the ten year anniversary of the Agri Dwala project outside of Napier in the Southern Cape. For those of us working full time in land reform and the developmental agricultural sector, it is always a welcome relief and energising experience to interact with a project that keeps on delivering positive results. Agri Dwala is the brain child of Kosie van Zyl, a local farmer, and Piet Blom, an...

LREAD – Land Reform perspective – September 2016

Casidra2018-12-23T08:51:36+02:00

(The views expressed in this article are not necessarily of Casidra)

Earlier this month I came upon a short news article on the BBC’s website: “North Yorkshire farmer takes on 900-hectare 'dream' job”. The article describes the joy of 28 year old Mr Jonathan Grayshon, from Dacre in Nidderdale in North Yorkshire, after learning that he was selected to farm on the Humberstone Bank Farm. The land owner, Mr...