Parliament, Wednesday, 9 August 2017 – The Portfolio Committee on Rural Development and Land Reform appreciates the quality of inputs received so far during the public hearings into the Communal Property Amendment (CPA) Bill [B12-2017]. The Committee has so far hosted four public hearings in the Western Cape and Eastern Cape in a planned nationwide programme of public hearings.

The Committee heard of the lack of post-settlement support that beneficiaries are experiencing that jeopardises the success of the land reform projects. Some of those challenges include the lack of training for beneficiaries that are new to the farming environment and the lack of water rights for new farmers.

“The Committee reiterates that there is a need to integrate and streamline the entire land reform process to ensure that beneficiaries are well equipped to make a success of newly acquired farms. The Committee has also urged the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform to work closely with the Department of Water and Sanitation and the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries to ensure that farms that are redistributed have water rights attached to them to enable immediate commencement of work,” said Ms Phumuzile Ngwenya-Mabila, the Chairperson of the Committee.

The Committee welcomes the acknowledgement that the implementation of the Bill will strengthen the governance of CPAs. Furthermore, beneficiaries appreciate and support the amendments with the hope that their (the beneficiaries’) challenges will be addressed when the Bill is passed into an Act. ‘What is more encouraging is the expectation that the CPAs have on the Office of the Registrar that will be established as a result of the Bill. This will ensure accountability and effective oversight over the CPAs,” Ms Ngwenya-Mabila emphasised.

The Committee will now head to Limpopo and North West on the next leg of the public hearings.

ISSUED BY PARLIAMENTARY COMMUNICATION SERVICES ON BEHALF OF THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON RURAL DEVELOPMENT AND LAND REFORM, MS PHUMUZILE NGWENYA-MABILA.   

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