Peak Journal of Agricultural Sciences Vol.1 (3), pp.42-47, April, 2013 https://www.peakjournals.org/sub-journals-PJAS.html ISSN 2331-5784 ©2013 Peak Journals
Full Length Research Paper
Impact of land ownership on farmers livelihoods in Limpopo province, South Africa P. I. Maponya1* and S. N. Mpandeli2 Accepted 12 April, 2013
This paper investigated the impact of land ownership on farmer’s livelihood in Limpopo province in South Africa. A representative sample of 300 farmers aged 16 to 65+ years (46% males and 54% females) participated in the study. The study involved Sekhukhune and Capricorn districts, with 56% farmers in Capricorn and 44% in Sekhukhune district. The following 10 local municipalities were visited: Elias Motsoaledi, Makhuduthamaga, Fetakgomo, Ephraim Mogale, Tubatse, LepelleNkumpi, Blouberg, Aganang, Polokwane, and Molemole. The results were analysed with software package for social scientists (SPSS). The following analyses were done: descriptive analysis and univariate analysis. The results showed that there is a great association among gender, employment, information of climate change, adaptation to climate change, information received through extension services, food scarcity, food security, livelihoods, land ownership and agricultural product.
1Department
Key words: Land ownership, sustainable livelihoods, agricultural production, Limpopo province, South Africa.
*Corresponding author. E
[email protected].
climate
change,
of Geography, Environmental Management and Energy Studies. Faculty of Science, University of Johannesburg, South Africa. 2Department of Environmental Affairs, South African Government, South Africa. mail:
INTRODUCTION According to FAO (2010), insecure ownership of land is a characteristic of many farmers in less developed countries. Insecure land ownership arises from a number of sources, depending on the historical pattern of land acquisition and settlement. Land ownership has the potential to increase or decrease agricultural production thus improving farmers livelihoods. Given the importance of the agricultural sector in economic growth, employment and poverty alleviation in rural areas, it is crucial that land ownership contributes to increased (or at least sustained) levels of agricultural production (FAO, 2010). The current land ownership and land development patterns in South Africa strongly reflect the political and economic conditions of apartheid legacy (RSA, 2011). The constitution places the state under a constitutional duty to take reasonable steps to enable citizens to gain equitable access to land, to promote security of tenure, and to provide redress to those who were dispossessed of property after 19 June, 1913 as a result of the past discriminatory laws or practices (LDA, 2010). As a result,
this paper addresses the impact of land ownership on farmers’ livelihoods in order to increase agricultural production in Limpopo province. The paper emphasised that it is through land ownership that farmers can access financial resources from financial institutions. It is through financial resources that farmers can contribute positively in agricultural production.
METHODOLOGY This study used both quantitative and qualitative designs. Questionnaire which included matters relating to land ownership, farmers livelihoods, climate change and agricultural production was used in the interviews and focus group discussions was conducted after face to face interviews with farmers. Permission was asked from the Limpopo department of agriculture to conduct research in their different local municipalities. Univariate analysis model was used, which is able to demonstrate the relationship between dependent and
Maponya and Mpandeli
43
Table 1. Summary characteristics of sample in 10 local municipalities.
Variable Number of farmers per district Capricorn Sekhukhune Number of farmers per local municipality Aganang Blouberg Polokwane LepelleNkumpi Molemole Greater Tubatse Makhuduthamaga Fetakgomo Ephraim Mogale Elias Motsoaledi Sex of farmers Male Female Total
independent variables as stated in the following general equation: Wi = _ + _Xi + _i
(1)
where Wi is the dependent variable value for person i; Xi is the independent variable value for person i; _ and _ are parameter values; _i is the random error term; the parameter _ is called the intercept or the value of W when X = 0; the parameter _ is called the slope or the change in W when X increases by one A representative sample of 300 farmers was interviewed. It was noted that 46% males and 54% females participated in the study. The study involved Sekhukhune and Capricorn districts (Table 1), with 56% farmers in Capricorn and 44% in Sekhukhune district. The following 10 local municipalities were visited: Elias Motsoaledi, Makhuduthamaga, Fetakgomo, Ephraim Mogale, Tubatse, LepelleNkumpi, Blouberg, Aganang, Polokwane, and Molemole (Table 1). On the geographical locality of the study site, Limpopo province is situated in the northern part of South Africa. It is the gateway to the rest of Africa, with its shared borders making it favourably situated for economic cooperation with other parts of Southern Africa (StatsSA, 2011). Two districts were selected as the study areas, namely Greater Sekhukhune and Capricorn (Figure 1). The selection was based on different agricultural setups and the different climatic conditions. For instances: (1) In Limpopo province, most areas are hot and some are also dry; increases in warming and
Total
Percentage (%)
167 133
56 44
26 16 31 51 43 22 20 31 52 8
8.7 5 10 17 14.3 7 6.7 10.3 19 2.3
136 164 300
46 54 100
declining precipitation are expected to have negative impacts on agricultural crop production (Sekhukhune District) and (2) In Limpopo province, there are districts that are experiencing dry and average wet conditions; this will result in increased seasonal rainfall and increased agricultural crop production (Capricorn District). Purposive sampling technique was used to select three hundred farmers to be interviewed in order to cover uniformity and homogenous characteristics like rainfall patterns, level of temperature and others. As part of standard protocol, a village meeting was conducted with all community representatives present: chiefs, indunas and local councillors of municipality before interviews. The nature of the research and the contents of the questionnaire were explained to them. The questionnaire covered both open and closed ended questions. Focus group discussion was conducted after face to face interviews with farmers. All farmers were invited for this focus group and the researcher used prepared climate change agricultural production questions to facilitate discussions.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION As can be seen in Figure 2, the farm ownership is controlled mostly by individual farmers (55.3%). This gives excellent room for better sustainable livelihoods because according to Shultz et al. (1997); land ownership, individually managed is widely believed to encourage sustainable livelihoods and the adoption of
Peak J. Agric. Sci.
44
LEGEND Main Towns Provincial boundary Main Roads Local Municipalities District Municipalities Mopani District Vhembe District Capricorn District Waterberg District Sekhukhune District
Figure 1. Geographic location of the Greater Sekhukhune and Capricorn Districts in Limpopo province, Source: StatsSA (2006).
Figure 2. Farm ownership.
technologies linked to land such as irrigation equipment or drainage structures. There are also partnerships between this individual farm and big companies since most of them have title deeds unlike communal/tribal farms. Through this partnerships big companies like McCain provides extension services and other support to them. Land ownership is likely to influence adoption if the innovation requires investments tied to land. Farmers were reluctant to explain how they acquired their farms with almost 43% failing to give relevant answers due to political reasons while 28% have inherited their farms from their forefathers and 22.3%
used own finance as seen in Figure 3. Only 1% acquired farms through land redistribution (to provide the farm workers, marginalised groups, women, emerging farmers with agricultural land in order to improve livelihoods) for agricultural development and 5.7% acquired through restitution (it involves the return of land to people who were dispossessed after 1913). Most farmers prefer to manage their farming operations themselves as shown in Figure 4. The results indicate that 77% of farms were managed by individuals for example, farm manager or farmer, 12% managed by farmers group, 9% managed by company while only
Maponya and Mpandeli
45
Figure 3. Farm acquisition.
Figure 4. Farm management.
Figure 5. Type of farms.
1.5% were managed by family. Based on my observations during farmers interviews in this current environment of changing weather patterns, the farm managers’ role is highly demanding to achieve sustainable livelihoods. Farmers’ role in managing his/her operation should include planning, organizing, controlling and adapting to any unexpected conditions that will impact on their livelihoods. As indicated in Figure 5, almost 37% of farms visited were individual farms while 29% were tribal farms. This is
true since most farmers were using communal land for agricultural activities. Concerns were raised by farmers who fall in the tribal farm category that they cannot raise capital since most financial institutions does not recognise them and hence their livelihoods are affected as the results. Preference is given to those farms with title deeds like individual, family and company farms. The results also shows that 13% of farms were community farms, 10.3% were company farms, 2% were family farms while 9% failed to answer.
Peak J. Agric. Sci.
46
Table 2: Farmers response to land ownership impact on their livelihoods
Variable Low income Yes No Increased socio economic problems Yes No Increased unemployment Yes No Reduced cultivated lands Yes No Total
Number of Farmers
Percentage (%)
274 26
91.3 8.7
141 159
47 53
214 86
71.3 28.7
25 275 300
8.3 91.7 100
Table 3. Univariate analysis of potential determinants of sustainable livelihoods and agricultural production.
Variable Sex of farmers Male Female Employment Working fulltime Working part-time Information of climate change Yes No Adaptation to climate change Yes No Information received through extension services Yes No
Total
Agric production (%)
OR [95%CI]
136 164
6.6 6.3
1.00[0.373 – 2.403] 1
292 8
6.5 0
0.72[0.285 – 1.141] 1
171 129
2.9 11.9
4.50[1.585– 12.697] 1
55 245
1.8 8.5
5.01[1.654– 38.383] 1
146 154
4.1 9.5
2.45[1.585– 12.697] 1
OR= Odds ratio; 95%CI = 95% confidence intervals.
It is evident in Table 2 that farmer’s livelihoods are being disturbed by lack of land ownership where 91.3, 71.3 and 91.7% farmers have low income, increased unemployment and reduced cultivation on their farms respectively. This result is in line with Gershon (2007); IPCC (2011) who identified a range of impacts associated with lack of land ownership. This included (a) low income, (b) increased unemployment, (c) reduced cultivated land, and (d) reduced soil fertility for farmers and households. According to Table 3, the odds of being affected by lack
of land ownership are 1.00% higher for male farmers than female farmers. This situation is not surprising because it should be acknowledged that women play a vital role in supporting households and communities to adapt through experience gained in agricultural production. In Africa, for instance women are the primary producers of staple food and they contribute much of labour that will go into coping strategies through soil and water conservation (UNDP, 2009). This situation is not different from Limpopo province, where most information was given by female
Maponya and Mpandeli
farmers. According to UNDP (2009) across developing countries, women’s leadeship in natural resource management is well recognized. Women for centuries have passed on their skills in water management, forest management and the management of biodiversity, among others. This enhances their chances of having sustainable livelihoods. The odds of being affected by lack of land ownership are 0.72 times less for full-time farmers than those parttime farmers as indicated in Table 3. This is true because being full-time farmer increases the ability to take adaptation options. The response of farmers in Limpopo province is in line with the study conducted by Nhemachena and Hassan (2007) that full-time farmers will not be affected much by any unexpected events like climate change and lack of land ownership because they are more likely to have more information and knowledge on how to cope than part-time farmers. Most of these fulltime farmers can also be targeted in promoting adaptation management by government to other farmers who do not have relevant experience and are not yet adapting to lack of land ownership. According to interviews conducted, focus groups conducted and observations by researcher, in Limpopo province most full-time farmers are doing well under communal and tribal lands. Another disturbing response is that of access to extension services by farmers meaning training, information sessions and skills transfer. According to Table 3, the odds of being affected by lack of land ownership is 2.46 times higher for farmers that received information through extension services than those who did not receive information through extension services. This situation does not surprise me because some farmers especially resource poor farmers, were complaining that some extension officers do not have relevant qualifications to do the job. Again some extension officers were also complaining that government is not organising relevant training courses that deal with land issues, sustainable livelihoods and agricultural production. This is a clear indication that extension officers need to be re-trained in order to provide valuable information to the farmers so that farmers can value them. As Mmbengwa (2009) emphasised that extension services have an important role to play in assisting farmers to acquire new technology, skills, innovation and production advice. So Limpopo farmers and government should priorities extension service because it will significantly increase farmer awareness of producing profitably even under tribal/communal lands. According to Maddison (2007), access to extension services can be addressed by governments like Department of agriculture and forestry, Department of land Affairs , Agricultural research council and South African weather services to raise awareness of the challenges of agricultural problems like land ownership,
47
climate issues and livelihood issues.
Conclusion This paper has presented land ownership issue in Limpopo province in South Africa. Some of the farmers’ response regarding land issues included: (a) farm acquisitions, (b) type of farms, (c) farm management and (d) farm ownership. The results indicated that farmers are aware that communal/tribal lands do not offer much security to improve their livelihoods hence there is a need for government to intervene in this regards. Barriers like (a) lack of information, (b) gender issues, (c) lack of education and skill should be addressed and being part-time farmers should be prioritise in the meantime to address land issues because there are some fulltime farmers who use communal/tribal lands profitably. Government need to address these barriers and help farmers tailor their management practices to land ownership in Limpopo province. Land ownership is therefore critical and of concern in Limpopo province because the majority of poor resource farmers in the province have low adaptive capacity and also lack finance and technology to sustain themselves. REFERENCES FAO (Food and Agricultural Organisation) (2010). The State of Food and Agriculture - An FAO Perspective, Rome. London. Gershon F (2007). Land ownership security and farm productivity: Evidence from Thailand, J. Dev. Stud. 24(1):16-30. IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) (2011). Managing the risks of extreme events and disasters to advance climate change adaptation: A special report on working group I and working group II of the intergovernmental panel on climate change. http://www.ipcc.ch/ipccreports/ar4-syr.htm [accessed: 11 January 2012]. LDA (Limpopo Department of Agriculture) (2010). Downloaded reports. http://www.lda.gov.za [Accessed: 15 March 2011]. Maddison D (2007). The perception of and adaptation to climate change in Africa. Policy Research Working Paper 4305.World Bank, Washington DC. Mmbengwa VM (2009). Capacity building strategies for sustainable farming SMMEs in South Africa, PhD (Agricultural Economics) Dissertation, University of the free state, Bloemfontein. Nhemachena C, Hassan H (2007). Micro-level analysis of farmers’ adaptation to climate change in Southern Africa. IFPRI Discussion Paper No. 00714. International Food Policy Research Institute, Washington, D.C. RSA (Republic South Africa) (2011). South Africa Profile, Report - 00 – 91 - 09, Pretoria. Shultz S, Faustino H, Melgar D (1997). Agroforestry and Soil Conservation: Adoption and Profitability in El Salvador. Agroforestry Today 9:16–17. StatsSA (Statistics South Africa) (2006). Limpopo Province Profile, Report - 00 – 91 - 09, Pretoria. StatsSA (Statistics South Africa) (2011). Community survey 2007, Statistics South Africa, Pretoria. UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) (2009). Women role in poverty reduction strategies in Africa United Nations Mozambique: UNDP.
