Recent misery in east Africa exposes the troubling nature of Land Affairs Minister Nkwinti’s recent statements suggesting that if so-called land reform in South Africa didn’t increase pace, then the government might have to enact “Zimbabwe” policies of government confiscation and redistribution. 

The minister’s irresponsible comments come at a time when famine threatens millions across Ethiopia, Uganda, the Sudan and Eritrea amongst others.  Across a continent where food security is dangerously fragile, Minister Nkwiti threatens South African farmers with the sort of government mandated property theft that has impoverished millions of Zimbabweans.  

The drought in east Africa may yet prove to be the worst in almost two decades.  The Economist reports that in Ethiopia alone there are likely to be thirteen million people reliant upon food handouts.  In Somalia, half of the population are reliant on food aid.  Food insecurity has inevitably led to political instability.  The mass hunger has ignited or intensified conflict in Kenya, Ethiopia and Somalia.  In Southern Somalia, Islamic extremists exploit the lack of food to help maintain areas under their control.   This political instability in-turn leads to a government failure to protect property rights, including those of farmers who are subject to constant threat of theft of their livestock and worse. 

Strong property rights are ultimately the foundation of food security everywhere.  If farmers face the threat of theft, whether from criminals or government, then their incentives to invest in the production of food is greatly diminished.  The Zimbabwean government’s policies are a case in point.  Once one of Africa’s breadbaskets, enjoying a large trade surplus in agricultural products, the country is now no longer able to feed even its own populace.  Things had gotten so bad that the government prohibited exports of basic foodstuffs altogether in 2008.  The cause of this crisis was the government’s attack on the rights of farmers’ property.  In the name of ending “imperialism” the Zimbabwean government has undertaken to take possession of farmland belonging to white Africans.  Those who refused to give up their land have been exposed to government sponsored violence.  Government linked mobs have been looting, raping and murdering white farming families all with government sanction.  Eventually, farms have been surrendered and transferred to government control.  The most valuable properties have been assigned to high ranking officials close to the ruling party in Harare.  Transferring land to both politicians and others has led to a steep decline in agricultural output.  Farming generally is a highly specialized skill, requiring professional training and years of experience in order to be able to make a living.  Across Africa, with often inconsistent rains and specialized microclimates, successful farming is arguably even more specialized and highly skilled.  Confiscating farmland from skilled professionals and transferring it to the politically well connected or unskilled is a recipe for disaster.

The results of the South African government’s land transfers already resemble those of Zimbabwe.  There have been countless cases of once productive farms reduced to overgrown forests or garbage dumping grounds.  By the South African government’s own admission, half of all land transfers have been failures.  If the government goes ahead with its intention to scrap the current willing buyer, willing seller policy, then continued failure is all but inevitable.  Indeed the marketplace is the only mechanism that will effectively change landownership without exposing the country to widespread food scarcity.  Mr Nkwinti’s comments alone are damaging in that they create a climate of fear and uncertainty for white South African farmers.  No one is going to make investments on their land, necessary to maintain or improve productive output, if they believe that there is a real possibility that that land can be arbitrarily taken from them.  Mr Nkwinti’s proposal might only be political posturing.  However, as has already been witnessed in Zimbabwe, failed politicians are willing to resort to the politics of envy and scape-goating to cover-up their own failures.  Discriminating against relatively well off minorities might be politically advantageous but, if the rest of Africa is any guide, the practical consequences will be tragic.