Workshop Report: Re-thinking rural transformation in South Africa

Abstract

The Foundation for Human Rights (FHR) and Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies (PLAAS) have collaborated to convene a civil society workshop aimed to strengthen strategic engagement around rural development and land reform in South Africa. The workshop purpose was to develop some fresh thinking on these complex and contested issues, and contribute to more inclusive, open and participatory policy processes on rural transformation in South Africa. It intended to create a space for in depth content-oriented discussions while current policy proposals were clarified and debated. The workshop took place in the context of heated policy debates in the media about controversial issues relating to land reform and property rights alongside an unusually secretive and opaque policy process with a Green Paper on rural development and land reform. At the time of writing public consultation on the Green Paper continues to be delayed, and the Land Tenure Security Bill was released for public consultation only in December 2010 with limited time to make submissions.