For decades, land reform in South Africa has not been as successful as it should be.
According to Peter Setou, CEO at the Vumelana Advisory Fund, this was due to a myriad of factors, like it being strangled by under-resourcing, budget constraints and poor delivery mechanisms.
“In addition, too little attention has been given to enabling the productive use of land,” Setou said.
The recent report of the Portfolio Committee on Land Reform and Rural Development, on the 2025/26 Annual Performance Plans and the Budget of the Department of Land Reform and Rural Development and its entities, reflected that South Africa is sitting on a slow-moving, underfunded and unsustainably structured land reform system.
The country is said to need a robust conversation on how to address these challenges sustainably.
The release of government-owned land remains ever more important in South Africa, says Wandile Sihlobo, the chief economist at the Agricultural Business Chamber of South Africa(Agbiz).
He said that, disappointingly, the Department of Land Reform and Rural Development has made limited progress on this matter despite this being one of the central aspects of the country’s inclusive growth agenda.
“In essence, while we confront many present-day challenges, these long-term reforms of the AAMP and land release must continue for the sector to achieve its inclusive growth aspirations,” Sihlobo said earlier this week.
Vumelana said the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (DALRRD) has a land restitution budget of R3.7 billion in 2025/26, a nominal 5% increase from last year, but a real-terms decline of 1.12%.
Meanwhile, the organisation said the Commission on Restitution of Land Rights is expected to settle just 281 land claims this year, down from 288 in 2024/25, and to finalise only 277.
“At this rate, it will take 30 years to settle the estimated 5 719 outstanding claims, and that excludes the thousands of newer claims awaiting resolution after the 2014 lodgement window was reopened but later halted by the courts.
“We therefore need to explore innovative ways of funding land reform, which will require a broader conversation and buy-in from all key stakeholders,” Vumelana said.
According to the Commission on Restitution of Land Rights’ Chief Land Claims Commissioner Nomfundo Ntloko, as of January 2024, the CRLR had a total of 5 985 old order backlog claims still outstanding, a significant portion of which needs to be processed and recommended for settlement within the implementation period of this plan.
She said the current budgetary allocations, as has been indicated previously, remain regrettably insufficient to meet the desired upscaling of claims settlement to eliminate the remaining old order backlog in the short term.
“It is critical that there is additional funding for the land restitution programme. Part of this includes urgently exploring the possibility of ring-fencing the Commission’s budget, which is currently included in the budget of DALRRD.”
Setou said that more strikingly, the Commission is functioning at just 51.7% of its approved staff capacity, with only 680 posts out of 1 447 filled. He said these bottlenecks need to be reviewed and addressed if the country is to make meaningful progress.
“Arguably, to settle all outstanding old-order land claims alone would cost an estimated R129 billion, according to Project Kuyasa-far beyond the Commission’s annual budget.
“In contrast, the Agricultural Land Holding Account (ALHA), the key trading entity meant to fund land acquisition, will spend just R1.1 billion in 2025/26. That’s a 22% nominal increase from last year, far short of the scale required.”
Vumelana said that, moreover, lease revenue under ALHA remains below expectations. It said that without predictable cash inflows or strong post-settlement support for beneficiaries, the sustainability of redistributed land is compromised from the outset.
The organisation said there is a perception that land reform distorts the market. It said this is perhaps the most damaging perception of all, and it flies in the face of how land reform has actually unfolded.
“Contrary to popular belief, South Africa’s land reform is largely market-based. Programmes like the Proactive Land Acquisition Strategy (PLAS) and the Valuer-General’s property assessments are designed to ensure that land is acquired at “just and equitable” prices, not according to arbitrary figures.”
Vumelana said that delays in valuation processes, lack of clarity in legislative mandates and bureaucratic inertia continue to hobble delivery.
The Office of the Valuer-General, while steadily improving, still faces challenges around measurable targets, skills retention and systemic reform, it said. In 2025/26, Vumelana said this office will receive just R149 million, hardly sufficient given its role in demonstrating the land reform value chain.
Setou said a different approach needs to be taken to address the challenges in the country’s land reform programme. At the risk of sounding like a broken record, he said the partnership-driven approach to land reform must be actively supported and scaled up.
“Redistributing land is only one part of the equation; the bigger challenge is ensuring that land is used productively, creates value, and delivers real benefits to communities. This is where Community Private Partnerships (CPP) have shown real results.”
Setou warned that looking ahead, South Africa does not need to reinvent land reform. “It needs to address the current blockages in the system, find what works, and scale up land reform support programmes that have delivered results,” Setou said.
