Issued by: Ministry for Agriculture and Land Affairs
27 November 2001
Durban - Minister for Agriculture and Land Affairs, Ms Thoko Didiza officially opened the long overdue Land Tenure Conference on Monday 26 November. The conference is attended by Amakhosi, various NGO's as well as other interest groups.
The Land Tenure Conference comes about as a result of the recognition of particular "grey areas" within the current Land Tenure Reform Programme.
Those areas include the continued lack of tenure security of farm workers and labour tenants and the need for a formal and organised land administration plan that recognises the key role played by Traditional Authorities.
Acknowledging that delivery and protection of farm workers and labour tenants tenure have been slow. Minister Didiza pointed out that progress has been made since 1996 and 1997 through the promulgation of two pieces of legislation. The legislation, namely the Extension of Security of Tenure Act (ESTA) and the Labour Tenants Act has, to a degree addressed some of the issues related to tenure insecurity.
"A plethora of legislation has been inherited from the colonial and apartheid governments. Many of them have either been amended or repealed resulting in new ones being promulgated. When we decided to call this conference, it was because we understood that any resolution of the land problem in South Africa in particular land tenure cannot be done by government alone. We are therefore calling on a number of stakeholders affected by lack of tenure security to share their experiences and also find solutions" said Minister Didiza.
The call for stakeholder participation and guidance is a result of the tabling of the revised draft Communal Land Rights Bill that has been compiled in consultation with Traditional Authorities as well as NGOs. The draft Land Bill will be presented during the Land Tenure Conference and will be aimed at recognising the underlying rights of groups and individuals to tenure security.
All information and recommendations from the various stakeholders will then be used to further strengthen the Land Tenure Programme and to bring civil society and government together to come up with effective solutions.
Various commissions will be meeting for the duration of this week where key recommendations on tenure reform will be outlined.
Contact person ; Nana Zenani
Media Liaison Officer
Ministry, Agriculture and Land Affairs
Tel : 082 378 2943