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I don’t typically comment much on the budget vote speeches, but the presidency’s budget vote speech delivered by President Cyril Ramaphosa on Tuesday carried vital messages for the long-term growth of South African agriculture. Among other things, the president stated that “access to productive land is essential to grow our agricultural output further, create jobs and lift people out of poverty. Over time, government has acquired around 2.5-million hectares of land under the Proactive Land Acquisition Strategy programme.” He further stated that “this land has generally been leased to beneficiaries on a short-term basis, which limits their ability to borrow money, invest in the land, grow agricultural production and contribute to the rural economy.” I concur and believe the lack of title deeds has been the major constraint to the progress of inclusive growth in South Africa’s agriculture. With the president now signalling the start of the title deeds release process, we may start to see some positive action to grow the sector. The president further stated that “as part of our efforts to revitalise rural economies, to strengthen land rights and support the inclusion of black farmers in commercial agriculture, we have embarked on a concerted programme to release this land with title deeds to deserving beneficiaries. The minister of land reform & rural development will outline the details of the programme to convert agricultural leases to title deeds.” The step South Africa is taking now is fundamental to achieving the goals that have long been outlined in chapter 6 of the National Development Plan (NDP) and thereafter in the Agriculture & Agro-processing Master Plan. Both documents indicated the possibility of growing the sector and creating new jobs. In fact, the NDP indicates that the sector and its value chain have the potential to create close to 1-million new jobs. Part of the prerequisites for those jobs was strengthening land rights and allocating the land in the government’s books to deserving beneficiaries. South Africa’s primary agriculture sector has delivered jobs over the years, from 718,000 at the end of 2012, when the NDP was published, to 960,000 in the first quarter of this year. The sector’s value chain also created employment during this period. Still, these job gains were far below the nearly 1-million jobs the NDP envisaged in the sector and its value chain. Part of the constraints on job gains was the slow progress in releasing land with title deeds. Now that the president has issued a directive to release this land with title deeds we see greater opportunities for growth and job creation in the sector going forward. The land will primarily be used for commercial farming. This means financing and training new beneficiaries must be among the considerations that will be reflected when the land reform & rural development minister releases the details of this process in the coming weeks and months. Releasing the land will be a powerful step to boosting inclusive growth in agriculture. This land is also key to ensuring we finally make progress in implementing the Agriculture & Agro-processing Master Plan. Importantly, organised agriculture, labour and agribusinesses, among other stakeholders, will continue to play a role in boosting inclusive growth in the sector, as they have been involved in drafting the master plan. Agriculture remains one of the sectors of our economy with potential for growth and job creation. The president’s important step to strengthen land rights is key to realising this vision and supporting the rural economy. Importantly, this is also a crucial signal that property rights are intact in South Africa and that investment in farming is protected. • Sihlobo is presidential envoy on agriculture and land, chief economist at the Agricultural Business Chamber of South Africa and a senior fellow in Stellenbosch University’s department of agricultural economics.
