Understanding land reform and the associated consequences for land use and livelihoods

Summary:

Avhafunani Netshipale Studied land reform in South Africa by visiting land reform farms in his native province Limpopo. He observed that the natives who were beneficiaries of the land reform attained either limited or moderate contribution from the land. Limited contribution was observed where land was used by the poor because the state did not provide enough support (infrastructure and money) for land use. Moderate contribution was observed where land was used by those with resources because they were less dependent on external support. Therefore, making land only available to the natives, but without additional support, will not make the lives of the natives better. Predicted limited state finance will hamper such additional support in the near future. In addition, climate change impacts such as prolonged periods of droughts and irregular rainfall are foreseen in Limpopo, which will make successful use of land reform farms even more difficult. Hence, within land reform policies priorities should be given to new initiatives to improve lives of the beneficiaries.