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Valuation, the role of the OVG and a formulistic approach to applying section 25(3) of the Constitution
The origins of the Office of the Valuer-General (OVG) lie in the 2011 draft Green Paper on Land Reform. The OVG was supposed to provide fair and consistent land values for rating and taxing purposes, .....
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Thinking about KwaZulu-Natal's agriculture and food production in this time of crisis
What we witnessed in KwaZulu-Natal over the past couple of days is heartbreaking – the loss of lives and the destruction of communities and businesses are unbearable. As President Cyril Ramaphosa po.....
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South Africa’s winter crop season to start soon
South Africa had a fairly good production season in 2021/22 with wheat at 2,3 million tonnes, which is the largest harvest in 20 years and record yield in some crops such as canola and oats. The large.....
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Definition of expropriation – a risk that should not be ignored
The Expropriation Bill is currently before the Portfolio Committee on Public Works and Infrastructure. The portfolio committee started discussing the Bill clause by clause on 10 March. What was surpri.....
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Expropriation Bill: status report
The current version of the Expropriation Bill (B23/2020) was tabled in Parliament on 15 October 2020. That follows unsuccessful attempts to come up with a new expropriation act in 2008 and 2013. The f.....
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Just and equitable compensation: the latest on the approach of the courts
The debate regarding compensation for land taken for land reform purposes has been raging ever since the CODESA negotiations and the initial formulation of section 25 of the Constitution. Over the .....
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Reflections on global grains and oilseeds market
The weather has been topical across the Southern Hemisphere because of the La Niña event. We have generally battled with excessive moisture within the Southern Africa region, while South America ha.....
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Implications of a failing state
The United States think tank Fund for Peace annually compiles a fragile states index consisting of states whose governments are so weak or ineffective that it has little practical control over much of.....
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Eastern Cape agricultural conditions are not as favourable as in most of South Africa
South Africa's summer crop growing regions have received excessive rains since the start of the season in October 2021, except for a few regions of one province, the Eastern Cape. This province's sout.....
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Reflections on land donation and beneficiary selection
The Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (DALRRD) published a beneficiary selection and land allocation policy in 2020. The policy aims to ensure household food security and fo.....
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Is a Land Redistribution Bill on the cards for South Africa?
At a recent media conference, Minister of Justice and Correctional Services Ronald Lamola indicated that a Land Redistribution Bill was on the cards for South Africa. The High-Level Panel on the As.....
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SA could have the largest wheat harvest since 2002
Last week, the Crop Estimates Committee (CEC) released its sixth production forecast for 2021/22 winter crops. There were notable changes from the previous update of the end of December 2021, with .....
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Preliminary area plantings data for 2021/22 summer crops to be released on Thursday
Aside from the locusts spreading in parts of the Northern and Eastern Cape and threatening the grazing veld, the major concern for much of South Africa has been the excessive rains. At the start.....
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What should we watch in the global grains and oilseeds market?
Unlike in the Southern Africa region, where a La Niña event typically leads to wet weather, the South America region experiences dryness. The drier weather has been the main feature of South America's.....
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Improved soil moisture in eastern regions of South Africa will boost 2021/22 summer crop plantings
South Africa's summer crop planting season is underway in the eastern and central regions. The rainfall and soil moisture will be crucial from now until February 2022, when the crop pollinates. A rece.....
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Resource efficiency in red meat abattoirs in South Africa
Water scarcity, greater demand for water, and changes in water supply due to climate change are severely affecting large parts of Southern Africa, including South Africa, posing a significant risk t.....
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There is room for an upward adjustment of SA maize production estimates
South Africa's Crop Estimates Committee mildly lifted its forecast for 2020/21 summer grain and oilseeds production from last month by 1% to 18,7 million tonnes (this compared with 17,6 million tonnes.....
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SONA a mixed bag on agriculture
Similarly to 2020, in this year's State of the Nation Address (SONA) President Ramaphosa reaffirmed the government's commitment to ensuring that agriculture continues to be amongst the key sectors t.....
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Improved soil moisture across SA bodes well for agriculture activity
South Africa is having a great start of the 2020/21 agricultural season. Most regions of the country have been receiving higher rainfall since October, which is a period when summer grain plantings .....
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Continued solid performance in South Africa’s farm economy
This is a quick commentary on South Africa’s agricultural economy performance in the third quarter of the year following the official release of GDP data. I won't endeavour to provide detailed anal.....
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SA agriculture exports hit record on large harvest and efforts to keep sector open
The combination of a large harvest, joint efforts between the government and the private sector to keep agriculture operational since the outset of the Covid-19 pandemic and the lockdown, and long-ter.....
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