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Christopher Farai Charamba Correspondent
Twenty years after the official end of apartheid, the ruling ANC party appears to have seen the light on the contentious issue of land in South Africa. During the recent 103rd anniversary celebrations President Jacob Zuma described the “willing buyer, willing seller” model of land reform as “unsuccessful”.

“Clause number 4 of the Freedom Charter says that the land shall be shared among those who work it,” he said.

President Zuma went on to say that to redress the historical injustice meted out by the apartheid government, that deprived black South Africans of their land, the ANC government had restored nearly 3,2 million hectares of land.

Between 1995 and November 2014, the South African government had paid close to R18 billion; in compensation to those that had given up their land.

This has resulted in a total over 1.8 million claimants who had been awarded with land.

The pace of land redistribution, however, was highlighted as a major concern by the South African President and he went on to say that government “need(s) to balance restoration, economic development and food security when we deal with the land issue.”

Rewind 15 years ago when Zimbabwe was at the same age as South Africa and President Zuma’s sentiments are seen to be similar to those of President Robert Gabriel Mugabe at that time.

At the turn of the century Zimbabwe underwent a historic land reform programme, abandoning the “willing buyer, willing seller” model that had proved fruitless.

Land reform is a sensitive topic in the SADC region and the programme that Zimbabwe underwent has resettled 400 000 families on land previously owned by 4 500 white families.

The liberation struggle was not one fought for political independence alone but also economic freedom and access to land is pivotal to attaining this.

World’s Richest Man, Bill Gates, recently commented on a book which he says “does a better job than anything else I’ve read of articulating the key role of agriculture in development.”

Gates went on to write that, “when you give farmers ownership of modest plots and allow them to profit from the fruits of their labour, farm yields are much higher per hectare.

And rising yields help countries generate the surpluses and savings they need to power up their manufacturing engine.”

It is essential he says to: Create conditions for small farmers to thrive. Use the proceeds from agricultural surpluses to build a manufacturing base that is tooled from the start to produce exports, and Nurture both these sectors (small farming and export-oriented manufacturing) with financial institutions closely controlled by the government.

This is what the Zimbabwean government has been attempting to achieve with the land reform programme and nothing of the sort would be attainable had the nation followed the willing buyer, willing seller policy.

The difficulty with this policy is that there is hardly ever a “willing seller” as wealth is in the ownership of the land.

Those in control of the land know this and therefore will be reluctant to surrender their source of wealth.

President Zuma’s remarks illustrate that President Mugabe was right about land reform and giving land to indigenous Zimbabweans.

The ANC, it seems, is committing itself to the principles it once stood for when it drafted the Freedom Charter in 1955.

This was not the first time that President Zuma had made such remarks.

In the 2013 State of the Nation address he said “We must shorten the time it takes to finalise a claim (for land).

“In this regard, government will now pursue the ‘just and equitable’ principle for compensation, as set out in the Constitution.

“This ‘just and equitable’ principle forms part of the draft Land Expropriation Bill which the ANC government wishes to adopt this year. The revised draft Bill that the cabinet approved last year allows for the courts to decide on expropriation.

“We commit that the land will be returned to our people and the ANC calls on its government to act with necessary speed to put the legislation in place this year,” Zuma said.

It is commendable that the South African government has sought to revise legislation and use the courts to assist the process of land reform.

It is a necessary step in order for South Africans to gain the full independence they fought for.

It is also beneficial for the region as a revision of policy shows solidarity with the efforts Zimbabwe made in the early 2000s

South Africa is not the only country facing difficulties with this policy that has kept the land in the hands of minority white people. Enshrined in Namibia’s constitution is the same willing buyer, willing seller clause.

As is the case in South Africa, it is the disgruntled, disadvantaged youth that are vociferously advancing the claims for land in Namibia.

Members of the Swapo Youth League have already attempted to settle themselves on land in the capital Windhoek under what they have termed “Affirmative Repositioning”.

Although these youth have not forcefully taken land, they have presented their demands to the government to assist them in gaining access to land and real estate.

Land is essential to the livelihood of Africans and the onus is on governments to ensure that indigenous citizens gain equal access to land as the liberators had intended during the struggle for independence.