Sweet victory for land claimants

The sugar industry and the government have collaborated on an agreement which they believe will save farms handed over to land claimants from financial ruin.

Last week chief land claims commissioner Nomfundo Gobodo and South African Sugar Association (SASA) executive director Trix Trikam signed a memorandum of understanding for 12,321 hectares of land worth R356m to be bought by the Rural Development and Land Reform department from private owners.

The agreement seeks to ensure, for the first time, that land bought for land claimants will be properly managed. Both the sugar industry and government want to prevent the collapse of thousands of hectares of productive sugarcane land.

About 77 000 ha of land has been handed over to claimants since 1998, but production on most of the farms has shrunk to very low levels.

For example a farm taken over by the Mshikashika Kamakhosini Family Trust, which produced 2 929 tonnes delivered in the 2010/2011 season, has fallen to 189 tonnes for the current season. Reasons for the collapse are lack of farming experience, loan finance issues and lack of technical support.

Welcoming the agreement, Gobodo said she hoped it would send a message to farmers that when there is a land claim in the area, it did not mean the end of productivity or that farmers should “run away”.

Land claims staff have also committed to process claims quickly and in line with the industry’s annual harvest planning.

Land will not be transferred in the middle of a season, possibly disrupting production.

She said that “educating communities is crucial to the future success of the management of these farms” and in accordance with the agreement, the sugar industry has committed to training land claimants, help them compile business plans and provide technical support.

In the audience was 65-year-old Mandeni farm labourer Napoleon Dlamini, who said that it was “a great day; I am very happy”.