The Minister of Land Reform and Rural Development Mzwanele Nyhontso officially launched the Integrated Land Reform and Rural Development Support Programme (ILRRDSP) on 26 October 2026 at Nywarha Village under the Mbhashe Local Municipality, in Eastern Cape.
The launch, held under the theme: “From Land Access to Sustainable Livelihoods: Empowering Rural Communities through Integrated Support”, was attended by cabinet colleagues, MECs, local politicians, traditional leaders, land reform beneficiary farmers, government officials, and members of the community. The ILRRDSP brings funding, technical support, infrastructure, skills development, and market access together in one co-ordinated system for land reform beneficiaries. The department has allocated R1,2 billion to the programme for the current financial year out of an overall total of R2 billion.
“Returning land without comprehensive and restorative support for those who receive it is not justice, but it is an empty gesture. Land without the means to productively use it simply perpetuates the inequalities of the past. Today, with the inauguration of the Integrated Support Programme, we are declaring that the era of dumping our people on land without support is officially over,” declared Minister Nyhontso.
Addressing the legacy of dispossession
Minister Nyhontso said that land reform had too often been treated as a real estate transaction, when in reality colonial and apartheid dispossession had also taken cattle, labour, cultural dignity, and economic opportunity from African communities. “When the colonial invaders took our land, they did not just take the soil. They also stole cattle, which represented the most important source of wealth and economic capital for our ancestors,” the minister added.
R1,2 billion across nine provinces
The R1,2 billion allocation is distributed to all nine provinces, in amounts ranging from R100 million to R170 million, according to each province’s share of landholdings. The programme is funded under the Provision of Land and Assistance Act of 1993, the Restitution of Land Rights Act of 1994, the Extension of Security of Tenure Act (ESTA) of 1997, and the Labour Tenants Act of 1996. These legislative frameworks allow the department to fund land development, provide grants and subsidies, and deliver training and capacity building.
The ILRRDSP is designed to break down silos within the department and across government, so that the beneficiaries no longer have to navigate multiple institutions on their own. “We envision a support system where a beneficiary farmer enters one co-ordinated process and leaves with a clear path to funding, technical advice, infrastructure support, and market access,” the minister emphasised. “We are determined to ensure that the practice of sending a farmer from one institution to another will be a thing of the past,” continued the minister.
Partnerships are already delivering
The department is strengthening partnerships with development finance institutions. The Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) will provide transactional advisory services, and engagements with the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), other development finance institutions and commercial banks will be deepened to expand blended funding. “These are not promises without action, as we have already committed R500 million through the Land Bank for a blended finance scheme,” the minister said, adding that a sod-turning event held with the DBSA two weeks ago showed that the programme “is certainly moving from policy to implementation.”
The programme is built around catalytic industries, anchor sectors such as agriculture, tourism, and manufacturing which create jobs, supply chains and local demand. Support will include tractors, seeds, irrigation infrastructure, and modern technology for small holder; community-owned tourism enterprises, agro-processing plants, and small factories located close to the sources of raw materials, and access roads and access roads, storage facilities, and digital connectivity. “Let us be clear, agriculture is the foundation, but the ILRRDSP reaches far beyond farming,” stated Minister Nyhontso.
Support for various categories of beneficiaries
Support will reach households, Communal Property Associations (CPAs), commonage farmers, co-operatives, and producer groups. Restitution communities will receive capital, expertise, and partnerships to make reclaimed land productive. Women, youth, military veterans, and farmworkers are prioritised, and investment is deliberately directed to communal areas. “The programme affirms that communal farmers are as central to land reform as are all other beneficiaries,” the minister explained.
Applications under review
The department issued its first call for expression of interest and applications for development support in September 2026. Submissions for the current production season, together with assessments of infrastructure needs are now being evaluated. “We recognise that applicants need certainty, and we are committed to accelerating decisions, communicating outcomes promptly, and ensuring that approved beneficiaries receive support without unnecessary delay,” assured Minister Nyhontso.
The minister concluded by describing the programme as a blueprint for healing the historical wounds of land and cattle theft, labour exploitation and economic exclusion. “True liberation is demonstrated through economic self-reliance,” he said. “Let us move forward together with one conviction that, through integrated support, our rural communities will do more than survive, but they will indeed prosper,” concluded the minister.
Media enquiries:
Ms Linda Page
Chief Director: Strategic Communications (DLRRD)
Cell: 071 334 3479
E-mail: Linda.Page@dlrrd.gov.za
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