Contribution of land reform programmes to beneficiaries on Rocky Drift Farm, Muden, KwaZulu-Natal.
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Date
2009
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Abstract
This study seeks to examine the contribution of land reform programmes to beneficiaries
and focuses on post settlement development for beneficiaries once they have resettled
on the farm. The contribution of land reform programmes is examined in this study
through the investigation of the Rocky Drift Farm, a rural area in Muden, KwaZulu-Natal
Province,
This case study has been chosen because it became one of the first Land Reform Pilot
Projects transferred in 1997 to a Trust, representing a large number of owners (232 in
total), under the government assisted land redistribution programme. It is now 12 years
since the residents have returned to Rocky Drift Farm and this period is regarded as
sufficiently long enough to enable the critical examination of development progress
relating to land reform since 1997.
This research has hypothesized that "whilst the Land Reform Programme does generate
some benefits for beneficiaries, it has proved to be an inadequate mechanism for
improving the quality of life for beneficiaries, and thus needs to be supplemented by a
number of other key support programmes in order to fully contribute to the lives of the
poor".
While this investigation has proven beyond reasonable doubt that the lives of of the
beneficiaries have not fully improved as a result of Land Reform Programmes at Rocky
Drift, improvement in infrastructure and service provision such as upgrading of 3 roads.
construction and upgrading of 5 schools, building of 1 creche and the supply of portable
water, has been noticed. Furthermore, benefits such as a sense of belonging, identity, trust, hope and reconciliation, resulting from the implementation of the Rocky Drift
Project have also not gone unnoticed.
However, despite the benefits mentioned above, it is strongly argued by this dissertation
that these benefits are inadequate to boldly conclude that land reform programmes have
improved the standard of life for Rock Drift residents after 12 years of resettlement.
Therefore, this study recommends, inter-alia, the following supplementary measures as
boost for land reform programmes to enable the beneficiaries to fully benefit from these
programmes, during post settlement;
• improving communication, co-operation and co-ordination among
the government departments,
• maintaining the continuity of the key stakeholders,
• establishment of agri-villages;
• link land reform projects with lDPs:
• re-establishing the Rocky Drift community structures and the
• letting of unused portions of Rocky Drift Farm, to mention a few.
Lastly, since the Rocky Drift Project piloted other farms, this study also recommends that
a further investigation needs to be conducted. This will draw a comparative analysis and
critically examine whether or not the lessons from this project were used to improve
other similar projects.
Description
Thesis (M.T.R.P.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2009.
Keywords
Land reform--KwaZulu-Natal--Muden., Land reform beneficiaries--KwaZulu-Natal--Muden., Theses--Town and regional planning.