Community Empowerment Facility Profile

BACKGROUND

Despite some successes in South Africa, the land reform programme has not lived up to the expectations that it would address massive racial injustices in land holding (87% versus 13%), and obtain a more equitable distribution of land ownership and provide for poverty reduction. While the process of land delivery have been so slow, one aspect of the problem, a great challenge is to realizing the potential for land reform to improve the livelihoods of many millions of poor rural and urban people has been the substantive failure of government to provide appropriate post-settlement support for emerging poor farmers.

As for tenure security, there are basically two types of security of tenure reform. One deals with tenure on farms and the other with tenure security on communal land. The complexity of tenure reform has resulted in the government passing additional laws to strengthen the land reform process in this area such as the Communal Land Rights Act of 2004, which, seeks to rationalise complex issues around tenure reform. The core problem here is approximately 60% of communities in this country are living in areas with unsecured tenure rights, and are evicted, whilst that resettled communities are not protected from the influx of people who are evicted from neighbouring farms often stranded. These evicted landless people should be the responsibility of Government and primary beneficiaries of Redistribution, but this responsibility is often shifted to the resettling communities who are already overcrowded themselves. The communities do not often have a system of receiving these people, thus it becomes open to conflict and abuse by corrupt community leaders.

Finally, while there are relevant legislations to protect the rights of farm dwellers, still there is inadequate support and resources towards this objective. The fact that farm dwellers are still treated as sub human will remain unless they are organized through social movements in order to defend their rights. The land question remains a bone of contention. While most land reform beneficiaries are interested to use land for agricultural production, the range of support services required to support small-scale production, such as land-use planning, infrastructure support, farm credit, agricultural inputs, access to markets have been greatly lacking. The challenges to the provision of adequate support to small-scale, resource-poor farmers are wide and include the absence of a clear and coherent policy on post-transfer support that cuts across various government departments, poor coordination between the different arms and levels of government and the absence of adequate capacity.

Furthermore, agricultural support services, where they exist, are overwhelmingly geared to supporting big and emergent commercial farmers, and there is little or no effort in supporting subsistence and small-scale farming that is principally oriented to household consumption and local markets. The gearing of land reform and agricultural support services towards agricultural production for the market, the overriding emphasis of policy and programmes of both the Departments of Land Affairs and Agriculture, is still undermining to the political commitments of government to reduce poverty and to address the real needs of millions of poor South Africans residing in the former homeland areas, on farms and in crowded informal settlements that seek land for basic household subsistence production as part of their pursuit of multiple livelihood strategies.

Policies adopted by government have seen substantial restructuring of the agricultural sector - the phasing out of key agricultural subsidies for infrastructure and production costs, the dismantling of agricultural and marketing boards, and the lifting of tariff barriers - leaving new entrants to the agricultural sector extremely vulnerable. Moreover, the liberalization of agricultural markets has contributed to hugely inflated food prices, threatening the food security of millions of South Africans. At the same time, there is an increased emphasis on the introduction and piloting of Genetically Modified Organism (GMO) crops in South Africa , with active backing and support of the government. The responses of civil society to this trend have been muted, with very little coordination amongst organizations that should have an active interest in stimulating public debate and discussion on this worrisome trend.

In such situation, there is need to challenge the conception of land reform and agricultural development that underpins the policy and programmes of government and that lacks to build on and support poor people's existent livelihood strategies, which are complex and multi-layered. Therefore it is important to educate these communities on alternative methods of sustainable development; and encourage rural planning and organic farming, traditional and indigenous ways of survival while working together with other partners and relevant government departments to achieve equitable and fair land restitution, redistribution and land tenure, that will enhance existing livelihoods in the country side, and have come together to fight for Equitable Land Reform in South Africa.

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GOAL AND OBJECTIVES

Overall objective:
To contribute to the accessing of land and agrarian rights for the dispossessed and landless people of South Africa.

Specific objectives:
Dispossessed and landless people in targeted communities have the capacity to engage in the land reform process and to facilitate effective land use for their livelihood.

Expected results:
Influence government, through effective lobbying and advocacy work, so as to encourage enabling policies, legislative reforms and policy implementation that improve the lives of farm dwellers Ensure that gender equality and issues of HIV/Aids are mainstreamed and not compromised in the policy review process.

•  Facilitate the long term security of tenure of farm dwellers and labour tenants thus opening up opportunities for sustainable livelihood.

•  LAMOSA has effective and efficient governance, management and administration systems. LAMOSA's member communities have systems that ensure equal access to land user rights and control of natural resources that are recognised by both the community and judicial system.

•  Provide direct support to farm dwellers and rural communities in their efforts to secure their tenure and other human rights as well as access to development resources necessary for the creation of sustainable livelihoods.

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WHO WILL BENEFIT?

CONCLUSION
This project and the overall Land and Agrarian Reform programme will continue to work towards and strive to realize a human rights culture in the farming communities and through this minimize unequal power relations that are perpetuating human rights violations.

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