adminHon Dr Douglas Mombeshora —
The Lands and Rural Resettlement Ministry has embarked on a journey to review existing land policies in order to come up with a comprehensive National Land Policy. We are delighted that the Food and Agricultural Organisation has indicated that they want to partner my ministry in this regard.
A land policy provides a basis for developing an overall framework that outlines the key measures required when addressing critical issues related to land. It gives practical rules and tools for institutions to govern this valuable resource. Often, a land policy should include issues on land tenure, land administration, access to land, land use planning, environmental management, land disputes, legal framework, institutional framework, and land information management systems.
Furthermore, a land policy should define the principles and rules governing property rights over land and the natural resources it bears as well as the legal framework which gives rights to access, use or transfer.
The history
At Independence, Zimbabwe inherited a racially skewed agricultural land ownership pattern where the white large-scale commercial farmers, consisting of less than one percent of the population, occupied 45 percent of prime agricultural land. Seventy-five percent of this is in high rainfall areas of Zimbabwe where the potential for agricultural production is high.
The majority of black people were crowded in arid communal areas characterised by harsh, hostile climate and marginal soils of limited agricultural potential. Therefore, there was need to correct this through the implementation of a land reform programme. Zimbabwe has a total land area of 39,6 million hectares.
Of this, 33,4 million hectares of land was reserved for agriculture while the rest was reserved for national parks, forests and urban settlements.
What followed were stages of land reform as follows. Land Reform and Resettlement Programme Phase I (1980-1998): The first phase of the Land Reform and Resettlement Programme covered the period 1980 to 1998.
The target was to acquire 8,3 million hectares of land and resettle 162 000 families. By 1997, the Government of Zimbabwe had acquired 3 498 444 hectares of land and resettled 71 000 families. Land Reform and Resettlement Programme Phase II (1998-2000): The inception phase of the Land Reform and Resettlement Programme was essentially the beginning of Phase II.
Phase II of the Land Reform Programme commenced in October 1998 with a two-year inception phase where farms covering 2,1 million hectares were to be acquired for resettlement.
Land Reform and Resettlement Programme Phase II, Fast-Track (2000): Given the complications of the inception phase of Phase II, a Fast-Track Land Reform Programme was launched on July 15, 2000 to speed up the pace of land acquisition and resettlement. This was mainly as a response to the land occupations by landless Zimbabweans after the rejection of the Draft Constitution in February 2000.
Land in Zimbabwe is categorised into urban land, communal land, resettlement land and protected areas; and is administered under different forms of tenure. To date, over 300 000 people have been resettled on 12,6 million hectares of land.
Following the Land Reform Programme, Zimbabwe’s landscape has altered significantly, resulting in an increase in demand for services such as clinics, hospitals, schools and business centres in rural areas. The 1990 National Land Policy has served as the basis of land administration and has been complemented over the years by a series of policies, Presidential proclamations, legal frameworks and the Constitution of Zimbabwe.
In view of all this, it is not disputed, therefore, that such a review of the National Land Policy was overdue. To achieve this, and considering the importance of the land resource, it is imperative that the views of all stakeholders be taken into account in the review process.
A series of stakeholder consultative workshops is envisaged to provide a platform for dialogue. While today’s workshop is designed to provide the scoping mission an insight into our achievements and challenges in land administration and the scope of work that goes into policy review to draw up a project proposal, future workshops will focus on drafting the National Land Policy.
I have already alluded to the history of land in Zimbabwe, the extensive land reform programme and various policy pronouncements that guided land administration all which require consideration in the policy review.
However, it is also important to consider the following:
◆ The Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio-Economic Transformation has specific targets that ministries have to attain. As such, my ministry supports other ministries such as those of Local Government, Public Works; and National Housing; Rural Development, Preservation and Promotion of Culture and National Heritage; and Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development.
The policy should, therefore, address matters that concern competition for land between agricultural and urban use; and
◆ International benchmarks and guidelines that include the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, Food and Agriculture Organisation Voluntary Guidelines on Land Tenure, the African Union Framework, Agenda 2063 and Guidelines on Land Policy in Africa and strategies on climate change.
Conclusion
A greater percentage of Zimbabwe’s population depends on agriculture and other land-based livelihoods. With land being a finite resource, it is important that a Comprehensive Land Policy be put in place. This will not only enhance equal access to land, productivity and sustainable utilisation of land and economic growth, but also the success of this country.
Dr Douglas Mombeshora is the Minister of Lands and Rural Resettlement. This article was taken from his presentation at a workshop on the Inception and Planning for the Development of a National Land Policy Project Proposal in Harare on October 28, 2016.
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