Question NW923 to the Minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development
23 March 2022 - NW923
Mbabama, Ms TM to ask the Minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development
With reference to the eviction of a certain family (details furnished) by a certain person (name and details furnished), (a) under which Act and/or legislative provisions was the specified family finally relocated to an alternative farm and (b) what support did her department provide to the specified family to ensure its sustainable agricultural livelihood on the alternative farm?
Reply:
a) Sections 4(1)(b) and (c) of the Extension of Security of Tenure Act, 1997 (Act No. 62 of 1997) (“ESTA”) were applied to buy land for the Moyeni family. This section empowers the Minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development to provide subsidies to facilitate the planning, acquisition and development of the land occupied or to be occupied by occupiers and former occupiers in terms of on or offsite developments. “Off site development” is defined in section (1) of ESTA as a development, which provides occupants with an independent tenure right on land owned by someone other than the owner of the land on which they resided immediately prior to such development. The Moyeni family therefore consented for the Department to purchase the farm described as Portion 2 of Longridge farm No 309, East London Registration Division as an offsite development. This has given them independent security of land tenure.
b) The Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development has recently transferred the property in full ownership to the family as the long-term occupiers who were about to be evicted; therefore, the Department will now apply section 4(1)(c) of ESTA which empowers the Minister to grant subsidies to the occupiers or their spouses or dependents of long-term occupiers to provide development support to the family. Any support that the family may require will be provided for in terms of this section.