Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2002. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Land has been the revolutionary metaphor for wealth and power in the world
and even more so in Africa. Ideally, land reform in Africa should therefore,
contribute to social and economic progress and ultimately result in social
equity as well as increased agricultural productivity.
This study was devoted to the history of colonialism and the meaning and
birth of land reform policies after colonialism. Moreover, to familiarise the
reader with the various meanings and issues concerning land reform
particularly in Kenya and Zimbabwe. The outcome of the study was to
provoke further discussion on the need for land reform in other developing
countries, especially South Africa, as well as to investigate whether
colonialism created certain land ownership patterns that had harmful effects
on the political and economic climate after independence in Kenya and
Zimbabwe.
Kenya has been unable to establish a sustainable land reform programme
since independence. Ethnic clashes in the early 1990's were seen as a
continuation of a battle to recognise the existence of property rights. The
contributing factor to the conflict was the fact that the political leadership in
Kenya was the direct beneficiary of land reform policies. Furthermore, the
uncontrolled privatisation of public land only resulted in economic and
agricultural decay. The Kenyan experience provides no evidence of increase
in agricultural production, but inevitably resulted in social and economic
inequalities and the emergence of significant landlessness, which was a result
of the inadequacy of government, to provide credit as was initially proposed.
Zimbabwe faces the painful reality that its political revolutions have only
brought them halfway to true independence. The objective for Zimbabwe was
to establish a functional socialist economy where decision making would be
under political control in order to bring about the drastic redistribution of
wealth from whites to blacks and to become independent form capitalists.
The importance of land in Zimbabwe did not so much lie in the social and economic inequalities, but rather the inability to access land, accompanied by
a growing overpopulation, landlessness, land deterioration and escalating
poverty in the black areas parallel with severe under-utilisation of land in the
white farming areas.
This study concludes that African governmental land reform programmes
have had mixed success. The complex nature of the liberation struggles in
Africa, created diverse post-independence governmental systems. However,
some former colonies illustrate certain common underlying issues such as the
fact that years after independence, land remains one of the key unresolved
issues in both Kenya and Zimbabwe, as well as in South Africa. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Gesien in die lig dat grond die revolusionêre metafoor van rykdom en mag in
die wêreld, nog te meer in Afrika is, sal dit ideaal wees indien
grondhervorming in Afrika kan bydra tot sosiale en ekonomiese bevordering
en uiteindelik kan uitloop in sosiale gelykheid asook toename in landbou
produktiwiteit.
Hierdie studie was toegewy aan die geskiedenis van kolonialisme en die
betekenis en oorsprong van grondhervormingsbeleide na kolonialisme, asook
om die leser in te lig oor menings en uitgangspunte rakende
grondhervorming, spesifiek in Kenya en Zimbabwe. Die doel van die studie
was om verdere besprekings oor die behoefte vir grondhervorming in ander
ontwikkelende lande, veral Suid-Afrika, uit te lok. Verder om te ondersoek of
kolonialisme sekere grondeienaarskappatrone veroorsaak het wat negatiewe
effekte op die politieke en ekonomiese klimaat in Kenya en Zimbabwe, na
onafhanklikheidswording, veroorsaak het.
Kenya is, sedert onafhanklikheidswording, nog nie in staat om 'n volhoudbare
grondhervormingsprogram daar te stel nie. Etniese botsings in die vroeë
1990's was gesien as 'n voortsetting van 'n geveg om die bestaan van
eiendomsregte te erken. Die bydraende faktor tot die konflik was die feit dat
die politieke leierskap in Kenya direkte begunstigdes van die
grondhervormingsbeleide was. Verder het onbeheerde privatisering van
openbare grond ekonomiese en landbou verval tot gevolg gehad. Die Kenya ondervinding
voorsien geen bewyse van toename in landbou produktiwiteit
nie, maar het onvermydelik sosiale en ekonomiese ongelykhede en die
ontstaan van merkwaardige grondloosheid tot gevolg gehad as gevolg van die
onvermoeë van die regering om krediet te voorsien soos aanvanklik
voorgestel was.
Zimbabwe staar die pynlike realiteit in die oë dat hul politieke revolusies hulle
slegs halfpad tot ware onafhanklikheid gebring het. Die doel vir Zimbabwe
was om 'n funksionele sosialistiese ekonomie daar te stel waar besluitneming onder politieke beheer sou wees om sodanig drastiese herverdeling van
rykdom vanaf blankes na swartes, asook onafhanklikheid van kapitaliste, te
bewerkstellig. Die belangrikheid van grond het nie soveel in die sosiale en
ekonomiese ongelykhede gelê nie, maar liewer in die onvermoë om grond te
bekom tesame met 'n toenemende oorbevolking, grondloosheid,
grondverarming en toenemende armoede in swart gebiede. 'n Bydraende
faktor was die uiterse onderbenutting van grond in blanke boerdery gebiede.
In samevatting wys hierdie studie dat grondhervormingsprogramme van
regerings in Afrika gemengde sukses behaal het. Die kompleksiteit van die
bevrydingstryde in Afrika het uiteenlopende post-onafhanklike regeringstelsels
tot stand gebring. Nietemin, illustreer somige voormalige kolonies sekere
algemene onderliggende uitgangspunte, onder andere die feit dat grond, jare
na onafhanklikheid, steeds een van die belangrikste onopgeloste vraagstukke
in beide Kenya en Zimbabwe, sowel as Suid-Afrika is.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:sun/oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/52912 |
| Date | 12 1900 |
| Creators | Wales, Liezl Jo-Ann |
| Contributors | Breytenbach, W. J., Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences. Dept. of Political Science. |
| Publisher | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | en_ZA |
| Detected Language | Unknown |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | 75 p. |
| Rights | Stellenbosch University |
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