The Ministry of Rural Development and Land Reform, together with land restitution beneficiaries in the KwaZulu-Natal province, reached a consensus over the weekend on a strategic path to deal with the challenges that have over the years hampered the effective and productive utilisation of land handed over to beneficiaries through the restitution programme in the province.
Accompanied by the Premier for KwaZulu-Natal Dr Zweli Mkhize; the Deputy Minister for Rural Development and Land Reform Mr Thulas Nxesi, and the MEC for Agriculture, Environmental Affairs and Rural Development Mrs Lydia Johnson, Minister Gugile Nkwinti in his address highlighted that the meeting was intended to give beneficiaries a platform not only to highlight their challenges, but to also come up with solutions to the challenges affecting them.
“Our main objective with this exercise is to close the gap between government and land reform beneficiaries”, the minister told about 600 delegates representing beneficiaries, Amakhosi, Communal Property Institutions, labour tenants, and claimant community members, who attended the consultative meeting at the Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre in Durban on 17 December 2010.
Acknowledging the fact that the Land Reform programme has not always achieved the intended outcomes, Minister Nkwinti emphasised the need to review certain aspects of land reform policies in order to come up with more pragmatic solutions for the land reform programme.
The meeting culminated in the appointment of a reference group tasked with the responsibility of developing an action plan with short, medium, and long term targets to deal with the recommendations which emanated from the meeting. Members of the reference group include representatives from Amakhosi; Communal Property Institutions; Labour Tenants; as well as members of the claimant communities.
Some of the key challenges that emerged from the robust engagement among delegates included the issues relating to post settlement support and customer care; legal entities and governance; Amakhosi and the restitution process; as well as labour tenants and the restitution process. The meeting with restitution beneficiaries forms part of the build up to a broader restitution stakeholder engagement to be held early next year.
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