Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies (PLAAS): Recent submissions
Now showing items 281-300 of 615
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The rise and decline of smallscale sugarcane production in South Africa: A historical perspective
(Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies, University of the Western Cape, 2013-12)South Africa’s sugar industry has long been distinguished by its large number of small-scale sugarcane growers (SSGs) farming on ‘communal’ land and its peculiar, privately administered regulatory structure. In recent ... -
Dynamics of decline in small-scale sugarcane production in South Africa: Evidence from two ‘rural’ wards in the Umfolozi region
(Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies, University of the Western Cape, 2014-05)Using evidence from two rural wards in the Umfolozi region, this paper critically investigates the dynamics and constraints of small-scale sugarcane production under conditions of decline. The rapid decline in small-scale ... -
The state and land legislation in Botswana
(Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies, University of the Western Cape, 2014-10)This paper aims to understand the political and legal dynamics involved in aspects of local government in Botswana as exemplified by legislative enactments. Mawhood (1985) suggests that such structures are charged with ... -
Changes in South Africa’s global agricultural trade regime, 1996–2013
(Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies, University of the Western Cape, 2014-10)This paper presents an examination of the major trends in South African international trade in agricultural products between the years 1996 and 2013. The analysis covers three broad areas: (1) the changing weight of key ... -
Space, markets and employment in agricultural development: Zimbabwe country report
(Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies, University of the Western Cape, 2015)Since independence in 1980, Zimbabwe has undergone several phases of land redistribution, generally to communal and working people. The latest phase was the Fast-Track Land Reform Programme (FTLRP), which began in 2000 ... -
Space, markets and employment in agricultural development: Malawi country report
(Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies, University of the Western Cape, 2015)There is a growing literature on the links between farm and non-farm employment activities in rural societies and the important roles played by rural non-farm employment in poverty reduction (Lanjouw, 2001; Davis et al., ... -
A scan of rural civil society
(Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies, University of the Western Cape, 2013)PLAAS commissioned Phuhlisani to undertake a review of rural civil society, to explore innovative ways in which researchers and organisations in rural civil society can work together in linking research to policy ... -
Commercialisation, deagrarianisation and the accumulation/reproduction dynamic: Massive maize production schemes in the Eastern Cape, South Africa
(Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies, University of the Western Cape, 2012-12)The post-apartheid era has seen the South African government trying to reverse ‘deagrarianisation’ in the former homelands by introducing ‘modern’ farming techniques and agribusiness principles. This paper situates the ... -
The changing nature of large-scale commercial farming & implications for agrarian reform: Evidence from Limpopo, Western Cape and Northern Cape
(Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies, University of the Western Cape, 2012-12)The privileged position of white commercial farmers in South Africa came to an end by the early 1990s, when political and policy changes removed the certainty provided by controlled marketing, protective tariffs and weak ... -
Social reproduction, accumulation and class differentiation: Small-scale sugarcane growers in Mtubatuba, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
(Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies, University of the Western Cape, 2012-12)This paper argues that the rise and decline of small-scale sugarcane grower (SSG) production in KwaZulu-Natal must be historically located within a changing structural relationship with miller-processors, in turn conditioned ... -
The disjunctures of land and agricultural reform in South Africa: Implications for the agri-food system
(Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies, University of the Western Cape, 2013-08)Land reform was introduced in South Africa in the 1990s to redress the injustices of colonialism and apartheid. But compromises in the transition to democracy saw a trade-off between political participation on one side ... -
Imithetho yomhlaba yaseMsinga: The living law of land in Msinga, KwaZulu-Natal
(Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies, University of the Western Cape, 2011)This report describes the ‘living law’ of land in one part of Msinga, a deep rural area of KwaZulu-Natal. It presents research findings from the Mchunu and Mthembu tribal areas, where a three-year action-research ... -
Contesting the food system in South Africa: Issues and opportunities
(Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies, University of the Western Cape, 2010)Rising food prices have become a growing concern globally and in southern Africa. In South Africa, where food availability is not an issue at present, the response has been to try to improve access to food, mostly ... -
Strategies to support South African smallholders as a contribution to government’s second economy strategy: Volume 1: Situation analysis, fieldwork findings and main conclusions
(Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies, University of the Western Cape, 2010)Within the ambit of the Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative of South Africa, government is leading a process to define a Second Economy Strategy. One of the opportunities that has been identified is the agricultural ... -
Making sense of 'evidence': Notes on the discursive politics of research and pro-poor policy making
(Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies, University of the Western Cape, 2012-09)This paper explores some of the assumptions underlying ‘evidence based’ approaches to poverty reduction impact assessment. It argues that the discourse of Evidence-Based Policy (EBP) offers poor guidance to those who ... -
The trouble with poverty: Reflections on South Africa’s post-apartheid anti-poverty consensus
(Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies, University of the Western Cape, 2012-09)This paper considers the state of poverty discourse in South Africa since 1994: the ideological frameworks, narratives and assumptions that have shaped the construction of poverty as an object of academic knowledge, ... -
Status report on land and agricultural policy in South Africa, 2010
(Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies, University of the Western Cape, 2010)Agriculture plays numerous roles in society. The most obvious is to produce food (and, to a lesser extent, fibre). While agriculture is the mainstay of the rural economy, it also shapes social relations and landscapes. ... -
Mainstreaming of HIV and Aids into South African fisheries policy
(Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies, University of the Western Cape, 2008)HIV/Aids is one of the most serious health, economic and social issues facing southern Africa today (UNAIDS; Heywood 2004). Although only 10% of the world’s population lives in Sub-Saharan Africa, 64% of the 39.5 million ... -
The impact of land restitution and land reform on livelihoods
(Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies, University of the Western Cape, 2007)This thematic paper investigates emerging trends evident in the limited literature available on the impact of land restitution on livelihoods, and suggests ways of thinking about, and planning for, livelihoods. The ... -
More to life than economics and livelihoods: The politics of social protection and social development in post-apartheid South Africa
(Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies, University of the Western Cape, 2009-03)In the past fifteen years the South African government has consistently tried to address chronic and structural poverty, using a variety of policy and programmatic interventions with uneven success. But, as the latest ...