It was used by the aging mugabe to gain political mileage and grip which he was losing to mdc led tsvanngirai. The distribution was unequal and gender insensitive. Land reform can, therefore, refer to transfer of ownership from the more powerful to the. In june 1998, the zimbabwe government published its policy framework on the land reform and resettlement programme. The issue of land reform in zimbabwe has captured worldwide attention since the year 2000, when mass land occupations firmly punctuated a growing political and economic crisis. In 2000, zimbabwes government expropriated white farmers without compensation. Zimbabwe s president robert mugabe admits failures in the countrys controversial land reform programme, saying some farms were too big.
In sum, the realities on the ground did not match the myths so often perpetuated in wider debate. Under the command agriculture policy, black capitalist farmers have. The land reform programme was described as illegal and a failure. Much of the literature on the political determinants of african economic policies that has been produced over the last decade seems to be motivated by the need. Emmerson mnangagwa is reversing coursebut a halfhearted land reform effort wont solve the country. Jan 28, 20 land reform in zimbabwe is the greatest flop in the world but a success in the eyes of zanu pfutseki. Land reform in the twenty years after independence. Zimbabwes new land reforms dont go far enough robert mugabe seized whiteowned farms. It begins with the premise that land policy, especially the fast track land reform programme, was made possible by the accretion and concen. Land reform in zimbabwe is the greatest flop in the world but a success in the eyes of zanu pfutseki. Zimbabwes new land reforms dont go far enough foreign policy. The land reform and property rights in zimbabwe of 2010 is a sequel report to the.
A quantitative analysis of zimbabwes land reform policy core. Land reform in zimbabwe wikimili, the free encyclopedia. A mere reference to land reforms in zimbabwe raised eyebrows. This website presents material linked to an ongoing research project in masvingo province in the southeast of the country. Zimbabwe why is one of the worlds leastfree economies growing so fast. Oct 03, 2002 johannesburg, 3 october irin zimbabwe s fasttrack land reform programme has ignored the critical role played by the commercial farming sector in the economy, analysts and farmers have warned. An adapted version of this paper appears in the edited collection post independence land reform in zimbabwe, published in may 2004 by the friedrich ebert stiftung in harare.
Mugabe must realise that the land issues in zimbabwe are the same as the land issues in south africa. Land reform is a zimbabwe success story it will be the. Land reform may consist of a governmentinitiated or governmentbacked property redistribution, generally of agricultural land. Land reform policies are generally advocated as an effort to eradicate food.
Challenging the myths article pdf available in journal of peasant studies 385. During the first and second phases of the land reform programme government pursued a narrowly defined land reform programme which focused solely on the in his ph. Nov 29, 2017 land reform is a zimbabwe success story it will be the basis for economic recovery under mnangagwa november 29, 2017 9. The second phase of the land redistribution and resettlement programme in the form of the fast track land reform programme ftlrp, which started in 2000, has created an expanded number and array of small, medium and large scale farms, and effectively transferring ownership from the minority, white farmers to new indigenous farmers. In 1980, zimbabwe gained independence from whiteminority rule. Much controversy and ambiguity has been associated with the term improved in zimbabwes land reform debate. The invasion of the largely whiteowned farms, accompanied by violent evictions and wholesale and wanton destruction and looting in 2000, led to a crisis between the judiciary and the executive that resulted in most of the judiciary being. This has involved a detailed study of what happened. Indeed, these have been part of the reality but there have also been successes, which have thus far gone largely unrecorded. Images of chaos, destruction and violence have dominated the coverage. Arbitrary changes to the legislative framework have contributed to the high level of confusion that has been provoked by the fast track initiative.
A policy tool identified for this purpose was the land redistribution and resettlement programme. The paper will also look at the zimbabwe governments. Zimbabwe, on one side of the spectrum, is facing a crisis in democratisation due to its radical approach to land reform. Land policy since 1980 and what has influenced same. Fast track land reform in zimbabwe centre for public impact. It contradicted the overwhelmingly negative images of land reform presented in the media, and indeed in much academic and policy commentary. A 1998 survey of farm workers in zimbabwe detailing their demographic, and skill, land access and viewpoints of land reform and redistribution is used to examine the very real constraints and the possibilities for poverty reduction among longstanding marginalized social groups in the ongoing fasttrack land resettlement in zimbabwe. Johannesburg, 3 october irin zimbabwes fasttrack land reform programme has ignored the critical role played by the commercial farming sector in the economy, analysts and farmers have warned. A critical analysis of the land reform programme in zimbabwe. Zimbabwes failed populistbased land reform is a salutary lesson for south africa on how land reform must be pragmatic, safeguard commercial agriculture and focus on boosting ordinary subsistence, small, medium and emerging black commercial farmers already committed to. The effect of the fast track phase of land reform on the financial sector was catastrophic, because most banks in zim held collectively billions of dollars worth of bonds on the commerci.
Mar 21, 20 in 1995, president mugabe introduced a land reform that seized land from white commercial farmers and reallocated that land to black locals, which led to disastrous results as zimbabwe went from a net exporter to a net importer of food. Overturning the settler colonial pattern of land use and creating a new agrarian structure has had farreaching consequences. Land reform is probably one of the most difficult domestic policy issues to bedealt with by zimbabwe, namibia, south africa and australia. Land reform in zimbabwe has been highly controversial. Of this land, 6000 white commercial farmers owned 45% of it, 11m ha of the most prime land. Speeding up the identification for compulsory acquisition of not less than. Land reform is a deeply political process and therefore many arguments for and against it have emerged. The story is not simply one of collapse and catastrophe. The policy consists of the land reform programme and the indigenisation and economic empowerment act of 2008 iee act chowa, 20. This paper assesses the potential consequences of a land reform scheme that draws on proposals.
Fao, policy options for agrarian reform in zimbabwe. In 1995, president mugabe introduced a land reform that seized land from white commercial farmers and reallocated that land to black locals, which led to disastrous results as zimbabwe went from a net exporter to a net importer of food. The government came up with new and revised land reform policy after 1990, passing the land acquisition act in 1992, which was supposed to speed up the land reform process through land designation and compulsory acquisition. World media demonised zimbabwe and the fasttrack land reforms which were initiated in 1999. Geza, the role of resettlement in social development in zimbabwe, journal of. For example, in the twentieth century, many land reforms emerged from a particular political ideology, such as communism or socialism. It has led to zimbabwes economic and social collapse. Land reform in zimbabwe neil h thomas department of city and regional planning, cardiff university, glamorgan building, king edward vii avenue, cardiff, cf10 3wa, wales email. Aug 30, 2017 the first phase of land reform was implemented in zimbabwe in the 1980s, so when the ftlrp was launched the government had experience of the nature of the process and its repercussions. There is widespread agreement on the need for land reform in zimbabwe as a means of reducing poverty. Fast track land reform in zimbabwe centre for public. Race gender and class in the government of commercial farm workers in hurunawe district. Land reform in zimbabwe last updated october 06, 2019.
Government and donors within the current land policy debate are discussing two general models of land acquisition and resettlement. Zimbabwes fast track land reform program ftlrp formally began. The land reform in zimbabwe was organised in line with that slogan and had the following basic elements of speed, which made it to be known as the fast track land reform. This policy allowed government to acquire, for compensation, land that it deemed. Zimbabwes president robert mugabe admits failures in the countrys controversial land reform programme, saying some farms were too big. At that time, most of the countrys arable land was owned by. Will zimbabwes economic downfall be repeated in south africa. But equally as valid is the view that the case for land reform needed to be reinforced because of the failure of zimbabwes friends and sponsorsthe multilateral and bilateral agencies especiallyto persuade robert mugabe that land reform was too important to be neglected. Benefits and costs of land reform in zimbabwe with implications for southern africa, klaus deininger, hans hoogeveen. What are the advantages and disadvantages of the land reform. Pdf zimbabwe land policy study prosper muza academia. Land reform is a zimbabwe success story it will be the basis for economic recovery under mnangagwa november 29, 2017 9. Zimbabwe received financial assistance for land reform during the 1980s and 1990s from various governments.
Land reform in zimbabwe free international relations and. Jul 31, 2019 zimbabwes new land reforms dont go far enough robert mugabe seized whiteowned farms. And, despite the largely negative press over the years, recent reports have sought to highlight some of the more positive aspects of zimbabwes land reform and agricultural growth. At that time, most of the countrys arable land was owned by some 4,000 white farmers.
Zimbabwes land reform since 2000 has been intensely controversial. But conditions were put on the way that the money handed over could be used. Land reform in zimbabwe officially began in 1980 with the signing of the lancaster house agreement, as an effort to more equitably distribute land between black subsistence farmers and white zimbabweans of european ancestry, who had traditionally enjoyed superior political and economic status. The first phase land reform programme immediately after the attainment of independence in 1980, the new government launched the first phase of the resettlement programme in september. This paper assesses the potential consequences of a. Zimbabwes political and socioeconomic map since 2000. Zimbabwe has a long history of land reform that dates back to the early 1980s. Oct 15, 2018 zimbabwe s failed populistbased land reform is a salutary lesson for south africa on how land reform must be pragmatic, safeguard commercial agriculture and focus on boosting ordinary subsistence, small, medium and emerging black commercial farmers already committed to farming. Land reform in zimbabwe officially began in 1980 with the signing of the lancaster house. What are the advantages and disadvantages of the land. At independence in 1980, they were 33m hectares ha of arable farming land in zimbabwe. It begins with the premise that land policy, especially the fast track land reform.
A framework for discussion papers part of the zimbabwe land series dale dor april 10th, 2012 abstract this article sets the tone and lays out a framework for the presentation of a series of discussion papers on land policy in zimbabwe. The land reform programme in zimbabwe has been a major area of international discussion for almost five years now. The study reported that of around 7 million hectares of land redistributed via the land reform or 20% of zimbabwe s area, 49. Overall impacts of fast track land reform programme. Land reform also agrarian reform, though that can have a broader meaning involves the changing of laws, regulations or customs regarding land ownership. Land has been a source of political conflict in zimbabwe since colonization, when the country was known as rhodesia, both within indigenous black communities and especially between white settlers and the black rural communities. This is further corroborated by literature from undergraduate and postgraduate students who have done researchwork on resettlement areas, especially in masvingo province. Land reform is probably one of the most difficult domestic policy issues to be dealt with by zimbabwe, namibia, south africa and australia. Evaluate the failures and or successes of land tenure reform in zimbabwe. In each of these countries the process of land reform is incomplete. This pdf is made available under a creative commons. According to the land policy statement of the government of zimbabwe adopted in 1990, which still applies, the criteria for identifying land to be acquired for redistribution are that the land is. By contrast, little attention has been given, in either scholarly or popular writing, to the gendered contours of the land issue in zimbabwe. In the early years of the reforms, the programme captured international attention and imagination, while in zimbabwe itself it radically altered peoples lives and livelihoods, and at the same time reawakened peoples memories of the past.
These arguments vary tremendously over time and place. The fasttrack land reform and agrarian change in zimbabwe. The research was concerned with the fact that land reform policies were made centrally, with little. But despite the general consensus not to repeat zimbabwe s economic disaster, few people disagree that land ownership needs to be reformed in south africa. Robert mugabe admits zimbabwes land reform flaws bbc news. Zimbabwe land policy study 2 executive to undermine the independence of the judiciary and subvert the rule of law in order to remove obstacles to the implementation of the land reform programme.
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