The need for land reform south africa suffered a long history of colonization, racial domination and land dispossession that. The zimbabwean government will then at last be able to tackle the contentious and highly politicised land. Redistributive land reform and poverty reduction in zimbabwe. Zimbabwes fast track land reform program ftlrp formally began with the land acquisition act of 2002. Reforms such as these may be proclaimed by a government. F political party, its key decision making structures in the. What are the advantages and disadvantages of the land. Front zanupf of robert mugabe, to mobilise the peasantry within zimbabwe. A critical analysis of the land reform programme in zimbabwe.
World media demonised zimbabwe and the fasttrack land reforms which were initiated in 1999. Land reform in zimbabwe free international relations and. The paper begins with an ethical case for land redistribution in zimbabwe, based on principles of social justice and equity, drawing from a brief history of land in zimbabwe from the first european expulsions up to independence. Land reform and resettlement programme and implementation plan phase 2, published in april. Government will continue to accelerate the pace of land reform within the framework of the constitution of the republic of south africa, respective legislation and according to the rule of law. Much of this land was previously cattle ranches, with limited. The effect of the fast track phase of land reform on the financial sector was catastrophic, because most banks in zim held collectively billions of dollars worth of bonds on the commerci. Written by claudia irigoyen africa infrastructure economics and finance. This in effect was the beginning of zimbabwes land problem. After 2000, around 145,000 families were allocated smallholder plots and a further 20,000 took on medium scale farms. Moyo1995 states that land reform has been undertaken in africa, in america, in. Land has been a source of political conflict in zimbabwe since colonization, when the country was known as rhodesia, both. Land reform is a zimbabwe success story it will be the. The fast track land reform programme ftlrp in zimbabwe has been the focus of.
The ability of the now ruling party, the zimbabwe african national unionpatriotic. Land reform in the twenty years after independence. In the analysis provided here, use is made of the cost estimates presented by these authors. This policy allowed government to acquire, for compensation, land that it deemed. Land reform is probably one of the most difficult domestic policy issues to be dealt with by zimbabwe, namibia, south africa and australia. Overall impacts of fast track land reform programme. The need for land reform south africa suffered a long history of colonization, racial domination and land dispossession that resulted in the bulk of the agricultural land being owned by a white minority. Land reform in zimbabwe has been highly controversial. The dutch claimants in the case, bernardus henricus funnekotter and others v. Aug 30, 2017 fast track land reform in zimbabwe written by claudia irigoyen africa infrastructure economics and finance the zimbabwean government began its land reforms in the 1980s to address the imbalances in land access ownership and use that had existed in the country before independence. The governments land reform program, char acterized by chaos and violence, badly damaged commercial farming. Since the 1990s, land has been taken from the white landowners and given to landless blacks in order to provide equality within the country of zimbabwe. There is widespread agreement on the need for land reform in zimbabwe as a means of reducing poverty.
A number of reforms were implemented over the years, with. Anyone flying over zimbabwe on a clear day in the year 2000 would have seen huge differences in the farming regions, and perhaps better understood the countrys longstanding issue with land reform. Land reform in zimbabwe is the greatest flop in the world but a success in the eyes of zanu pfutseki. In southern africa, tenure reform must address a range of problems arising from settler colonisation and dispossession.
This paper assesses the potential consequences of a. A small minority of white largescale commercial farmers owned and. Government will at all times act in the best interest of our nation. An adapted version of this paper appears in the edited collection post independence land reform in zimbabwe, published in may 2004 by the friedrich ebert stiftung in harare. Land reform, commercial agriculture and local economic. The invasion of the largely whiteowned farms, accompanied by violent evictions and wholesale and wanton destruction and looting in 2000, led to a crisis between the judiciary and the executive that resulted in most of the judiciary being. Most coverage of zimbabwes land reform insists that agricultural production has almost totally collapsed, that food insecurity is rife, that rural economies are in. But conditions were put on the way that the money handed over could be used. This is followed by the section that presents the framework for understanding poverty alleviation in the resettlement areas. Land reform in zimbabwe has radically transformed the rural economy. In 2000, zimbabwes government expropriated white farmers without compensation. Race gender and class in the government of commercial farm workers in hurunawe district. Land reform in zimbabwe officially began in 1980 with the signing of the lancaster house.
Nov 29, 2017 land reform is a zimbabwe success story it will be the basis for economic recovery under mnangagwa november 29, 2017 9. Land reform is the change of laws, regulations or customs regarding land ownership. The zimbabwean government began its land reforms in the 1980s to address the imbalances in land access ownership and use that had existed in the country before independence. The resulting lancaster house agreement set a framework for key outcomes, including a roadmap to elections through a universal plebiscite, a constitution, and steps to achieve equitable land reform. During the first and second phases of the land reform programme government pursued a narrowly defined land reform programme which focused solely on the in his ph. The following section then presents the settingcontext for understanding land reform and poverty reduction. Land reform in zimbabwe, 19801990 robin palmer introduction on 18 april 1990 zimbabwe celebrates the 10th anniversary of its independence. This pdf is made available under a creative commons.
It indicates that from 2009 to december 2011, about 823 300 hectares of land were acquired and allocated to 20 290 beneficiaries, an improvement over previous years that indicates that our systems are improving. The government came up with new and revised land reform policy after 1990, passing the land acquisition act in 1992, which was supposed to speed up the land reform process through land designation and compulsory acquisition. A mere reference to land reforms in zimbabwe raised eyebrows. Zimbabwe, on one side of the spectrum, is facing a crisis in democratisation due to its radical approach to land reform. The impact of land reform in zimbabwe on the conservation of cheetahs and other large carnivores thesis pdf available october 2011 with 8,018 reads how we measure reads. That can include governmentinitiated property redistribution. Land reform in south africa is a moral, social and economic imperative. Evidence on the performance of zimbabwes early land reform e. The second phase of the land redistribution and resettlement programme in the form of the fast track land reform programme ftlrp, which started in 2000, has created an expanded number and array of small, medium and large scale farms, and effectively transferring ownership from the minority, white farmers to new indigenous farmers. The domino effect of the present land reform policy has resulted in zimbabwes gdp shrinking by 4. One of the most critical issues zimbabwe currently faces is that of land redistribution. The invasion of the largely whiteowned farms, accompanied by violent evictions and wholesale and wanton destruction and looting in 2000, led to a crisis between the judiciary and the executive that resulted in most of the judiciary being forced out of office.
The paper begins with an ethical case for land redistribution in zimbabwe, based on principles of social justice and equity, drawing from a brief history of land in zimbabwe from the first european. The targets of the first phase of the land reform and resettlement program were landless families, the unemployed and poor families with dependants. Land reform, a purposive change in the way in which agricultural land is held or owned, the methods of cultivation that are employed, or the relation of agriculture to the rest of the economy. Land reform has spatially and temporally occurred throughout the world as a result of a need to change patterns of land ownership or land use king, 1977. Land reform in zimbabwe officially began in 1980 with the signing of the lancaster house agreement, as an effort to more equitably distribute land between black subsistence farmers and white zimbabweans of european ancestry, who had traditionally enjoyed superior political and economic status. This replaced an agrarian structure that was divided between 4,500 largescale commercial farms and many small communal area farms.
Recent extensive land reform and agrarian change in zimbabwe exposes the myth that the land question in settler africa is not a primary contradiction of the national question, and that land reform can only be resolved through a liberal democratic transition of negotiated settlement under neoliberal land reform. Zimbabwe s land reform program and has resulted in whiteowned farms being seized. In this section, we zero in on masvingo province in the central south and east of the country. Speeding up the identification for compulsory acquisition of not less than. Essentially, the government of zimbabwe was the major player in the land reform process. Zimbabwe attained political independence in 1980 and embarked upon its land reform programme thereafter. Usaidzimbabwe and the land tenure center of the university of wisconsin to provide technical assistance, training, capacity building and research in support of zimbabwes land reform and resettlement program ii lrrp ii. Disparity between policy design and implementation medicine masiiwa institute of development studies university of zimbabwe may 2004 note. Gender issues in land allocation and reform the primary goal of the land reform in zimbabwe has always been to create racial parity in access to land for settlement and farming. Will zimbabwes economic downfall be repeated in south africa. The land reform and property rights in zimbabwe of 2010 is a sequel report to. These studies have reported an internal rate of return to the program that exceeds 20%.
Evaluate the failures and or successes of land tenure reform in zimbabwe. What are the advantages and disadvantages of the land reform. Zimbabwe received financial assistance for land reform during the 1980s and 1990s from various governments. The fasttrack land reform and agrarian change in zimbabwe. The land reform and property rights in zimbabwe of 2010 is a sequel report to the 2007, adding insult to injury, a preliminary report on human rights violations on commercial farms 20002005. Fast track land reform in zimbabwe centre for public impact. At independence in 1980 zimbabwe inherited a highly skewed pattern of land distribution. Land reform is a zimbabwe success story it will be the basis for economic recovery under mnangagwa november 29, 2017 9. This early land reform produced a rather feudal form of politics based on racial and class discrimination imposed on the african population by the british government and white rhodesians. Land reform involved the targeted resettlement of the black majority from unproductive. In this paper we use a unique micro data set with information on land reform bene. A quantitative analysis of zimbabwes land reform policy core.
Land reform in zimbabwe university of south africa. Jan 28, 20 land reform in zimbabwe is the greatest flop in the world but a success in the eyes of zanu pfutseki. Reforms such as these may be proclaimed by a government, by interested groups, or by revolution. Simultaneously, the famous lancaster house constitution expires. Pdf most commentary on zimbabwes land reform insists that agricultural production has almost totally collapsed, that food insecurity is rife, that. In april 2009, a tribunal of the international centre for settlement of investment disputes icsid ordered the government of zimbabwe to compensate a group of dutch nationals whose farms were expropriated under zimbabwes controversial land reform program. The sadc region represents close to a third of the total african land mass. In each of these countries the process of land reform is incomplete. Introduction at independence in 1980 zimbabwe inherited a highly skewed pattern of land distribution. Pdf land reform in zimbabwe craig richardson academia.
A 1998 survey of farm workers in zimbabwe detailing their demographic, and skill, land access and viewpoints of land reform and redistribution is used to examine the very real constraints and the possibilities for poverty reduction among longstanding marginalized social groups in the ongoing fasttrack land resettlement in zimbabwe. It has led to zimbabwe s economic and social collapse. Land has been a source of political conflict in zimbabwe since colonization, when. Moyo, the interaction of market and compulsory land acquisition processes with social action in zimbabwe s land reform, p. This paper assesses the potential consequences of a land reform scheme that draws on proposals. It has led to zimbabwes economic and social collapse. The programmes stated targets were intended to alter the ethnic balance of land ownership. The land and agrarian question in zimbabwe sam moyo this. It was used by the aging mugabe to gain political mileage and grip which he was losing to mdc led tsvanngirai. Fast track land reform in zimbabwe centre for public. Redistributive land reform and poverty reduction in zimbabwe, by.
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