Farmers should not be afraid of land reform. That's the idea Athol Trollip of the DA proposed at a recent Farmer's Day in Kasouga, but farmers present remained sceptical.
Farmers should not be afraid of land reform. That's the idea Athol Trollip of the DA proposed at a recent Farmer's Day in Kasouga, but farmers present remained sceptical.
Land reform focuses on reversing the Native Lands Act of 1913 and giving land back to the previously repressed people.
On the 100th anniversary of the Act, land reform is a critical national talking point: the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform has a 30 year plan for transferral of both agricultural land and skills.
The issue of land reform is controversial in South Africa, with some arguing it is a waste of taxpayers' money and that re-appropriated farmsteads are ultimately mismanaged and neglected.
Trollip relates these arguments to examples of the Salem farming district, and how mismanagement has led to the area's overall decline in quality and quantity of both input and output.
Of course, there are land reform success stories like that of Xanthium farm in Driefontein, Limpopo.
Trollip says it is exactly those examples which need to be followed. Farmers directly affected by land reform can prolong their agricultural careers through co-operation with government, making themselves indispensible.
Farmers should use the opportunity to form a strong partnerships which can compete on a global level, through strengthened relations and balance between public and private ownership of capital.
It is the pressures of civil society that affect parliament the most, and so farmers must be vigilant in making sure their agricultural interests are translated into political action.
Trollip stressed that fighting against land reform will only be detrimental to the farmers.
Those aspects of success in land reform must be studied, researched, implemented and and incorporated effectively into future re-appropriations.
