While the year is still fresh, there are pending matters the agricultural sector is battling that need serious attention by all stakeholders to ensure growth and prosperity.
In their policy outlook for the year 2026 titled “Stability, reform and competitiveness in constrained economy”, AgriSA cited that this year, there will be various developments that could disrupt the required policy certainty, stability and regulatory architecture of the South African food system.
In the report, Agri SA stated that these developments range from continued uncertainty over the implementation of the Expropriation Act of 2024, major water governance reforms, and the need for critical reforms in energy, telecommunications and agricultural development.
“The real-world experience of the agricultural business environment is also plagued by challenges outside of the mandate of two state departments directly associated with agriculture, namely the department of agriculture and the department of rural development and land reform.
“As an industry, we have aligned ourselves with a practice of defining all-encompassing policies. This has taken effect in costly programmes on a national and provincial level that have largely continued to result in timid, fragmented, slow and uncoordinated successes and failures,” AgriSA said.
Land reform standoff
On land reform, AgriSA stated that they remain opposed to the Expropriation Act, and they will employ all necessary resources to defend property rights and uphold the principles that support farmers and the agricultural community at large.
“Land reform remains one of the most politically sensitive and economically consequential policy areas. AgriSA’s position on the South African Land Reform Programmes is guided by its Holistic Land Plan.
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“The fact that about 2.2 million hectares that have been acquired by the state have not been transferred to new farmers further demonstrates the ongoing underperformance of state departments in the implementation of land reform and agricultural development.”
According to the organisation, it is fully committed to protecting farmers against arbitrary expropriation. “While it is prepared to approach the courts on material flaws contained in the Expropriation Act if necessary, its long-term strategy must also focus on influencing the regulatory framework accompanying the Expropriation Act, ensuring clarity on just and equitable compensation.
“AgriSA will continue to engage government to secure transparent processes, fair valuation standards, and accessible appeal mechanisms.”
Policy implementation lacks
Land reform expert Peter Setou said looking ahead, the litmus test for the Expropriation Act lies in its implementation.
“The devil is in the details, and time will tell how the implementation of this piece of legislation will unfold. At the same time, any policy is as good as its implementation and the efficacy of the Expropriation Act.
“The anticipated enactment of the Equitable Access to Land Bill and the Communal Land Bill will hinge on the manner in which the provisions of the laws are implemented,” Setou explained.
He noted that the reasons behind the slow delivery of land reform are not new. They mirror some of the key findings outlined in the 2017 Report of the High-Level Panel on the assessment of the legislation, also known as the Motlanthe Report.
“Similar sentiments were echoed by the Presidential Advisory Panel on Land Reform and Agriculture. Worryingly, there is little evidence to suggest that the institutional hindrances that the panels identified nearly 10 years ago are being addressed,” he said.
Meanwhile, on the topic of rural safety, Agri SA stated that rural safety remains a critical concern affecting farmer well-being, labour stability, investment confidence, and rural economies.
“Key challenges on rural safety are high levels of violent crime in rural areas. limited visibility and capacity of rural policing, inconsistent implementation of the rural safety strategy and social fragmentation and declining trust in institutions.
“On the national rural safety strategy, AgriSA has maintained that the strategy is a well-written document and that the issue remains the lack of effective implementation. AgriSA remains that the strategy should not be replaced, but only small adjustments should be made to allow for more relevant and practical implementation at station level,” AgriSA said.
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