Rethinking The Rural Development Research Agenda
In Southern Africa
The Changing Global Landscape in Rural Development: Critical
Choices for Results-Oriented Research in Southern Africa
By
Vuyo Mahlati
24 November 2010
University of Pretoria Postgraduate School of Agriculture
and Rural Development
PROBLEM AREAS
 Global Realities and the Rural Dilemma
 Meaning and Measurement - Definitions and Conceptual




Frameworks
Strategic Intent (Skirting the Structural/Systemic Issues)
Problematic Institutional Premise
(Traditional/Colonial/Post-Colonical-Global)
Donor-dependency & impact on research (sponsored views)
Fragmentation of Research
 Sector-focus versus Issue-based
 Mono-discipline
Global Realities
 Declining world economy with massive job losses and contraction of
world trade
 Poverty and Hunger
 Climate change and ecosystem change
 Threat to rural livelihoods;
 Vulnerability of rural sectors -agriculture, coastal resources, energy, forestry,
tourism, and water;
 Low-latitude location - Up to 80 percent of the damages from climate
change may be concentrated in low-latitude countries (Mendelsohn 2008)
 Regional and Global integration focuses on integrating global markets,
neglecting the needs of people that markets cannot meet
 Foreign aid decline with increasing doubt on effectiveness
 “Financialisation” of the global economic system with financial
exclusion of the rural poor
Rural Dilemma
Rural Poverty, Disease and Low Productivity
 Feminization of rural areas = Feminization of agriculture = Feminization of poverty and
disease (Youth exodus to cities),
 Social protection (absolute poverty strategies) vs productive and sustainable livelihoods
 Comparative advantage that does not translate to competitiveness,
 Ecosystem sustainability,
 Spatial imbalances & Rural-urban disconnect
 Overdependence on subsistence agriculture,
 Food Insecurity,
 Limited access to off-farm employment,
 Unemployment with sluggish development in urban areas,
 Skewed income distribution,
 Poor transport, basic services and market infrastructure,
 Low literacy rates
 Legacy of colonialization and apartheid
Comparative Advantage: Competitive Disadvantage
Mining
Agric/Forest
Tourism
Dualistic Economy
Dependence on the export of primary products, absence of an industrial base,
weak savings and investments, limited profit-earning capacity of capital,
under-serviced basic and social needs (health, education, and social welfare)
Zambia Example: 65% Rural Pop
Economic growth averaging more than 4% between 1997 and 2007 (6.2% in
2007, 5.8% in 2008 and 4.5% in 2009);
2nd largest producer of Cobalt and 7th largest producer of Copper in the world ;
BUT
Inequality and exclusion from mainstream financial markets:
 64% of individuals live below the traditional “dollar a day” poverty line, which
has now been adjusted to $1.25/day;
 Almost 87% of individuals survive on less than $2.50 a day (the traditional
$2/day line);
 85% of FinScope Survey 2009 rural based respondents - no formal education
compared to 14% urban dwellers
 Only 13.9% of Zambian adults use commercial bank products.
 Usage of commercial bank products is higher in urban than in rural areas.
 Low insurance penetration (6.6%)
Zambia Example
Zambia Microenterprise Sector
Source: Zambia Business Survey 2010
RURAL DILEMMA: SOCIAL JUSTICE AND SUSTAINABLE
DEVELOPMENT
Rural development and Land Reform: Addressing the
Past, the Present and the Future
How can land reform redress injustices from colonial and
apartheid regimes of dispossession and discrimination
(racial/gender), the legacy of poverty and underdevelopment, as well as tackle the challenges of
population growth, increasing inequality, climate change
and “financialisation” of the economic system.
According to Foster (2007) “financialisation” refers to the shift in the
weight of economic activity from production to finance.
Problem
Lack of clarity, coherence and
consensus on rural
development
conceptualization,
definition(s), the driving
development agenda, with
inadequate delivery strategies
and measurement.
Rural Development Definitions
Chambers(1983) definition
strategy to enable a specific group of people, poor rural women
and men, to gain for themselves and their children more of
what they want and need. It involves helping the poorest
among those who seek livelihood in the rural areas to
demand and control more of the benefits of development
(1983:147).
What is rural development?
Rural development (RD)- is the improvement of the spatial
and socioeconomic environment of rural space, which
leads to the enhancement of the individual’s ability to
care for and sustain his/her well-being (Madu, 2003b).
 multidimensional and multifunctional in nature (SARDF,
1997; Knickel and Renting, 2000).
 constitute a broader subject than agricultural economics,
with a spatial as opposed to a sectoral definition (de
Janvry et al, 2002).
Difference between agricultural
economics and rural economics
Agricultural economics
Elementary unit of analysisfarm
Major fields of analysis
 Farm production
 Marketing of agricultural
commodities
 Demand for food
 Performance of product and
factor markets
Rural economics
Elementary unit of analysishousehold with the farm as
a typical subset of economic
activity
Major fields of analysis
 Resource allocation by
household
 Choices of income strategies
 Poverty and inequality (de
Janvry et al., 2002).
Cont…
 Linkages between agriculture
and other sectors of the
economy, and the rest of the
world
 Emergence of performance of



 Agricultural and food policy
(de Janvry et al., 2002).


agrarian institutions
Income levels
Income and food security
Satisfaction of basic needs
(access to public goods and
services e.g health and
education)
Intergenerational equity
Quality (standard) of life (de
Janvry et al., 2002).
Rural Population and Agricultural Employment in South Africa Compared to the Rest of the World, 2004
Economically active in agriculture as percentage of total economically active
Rural population as percentage of total
South Africa
Asia and the Pacific
Near East and North Africa
Latin America and Caribbean
Countries in Transition
Sub-Saharan Africa
Developing economies
Developed economies
World
0%
10%
20%
30%
Calculated from FAO, The State of Food and Agriculture 2006 (Presidency 2008 )
40%
50%
60%
70%
Rural Development Ideas Timeline
Adapted from Ellis & Biggs (2001)
1950s
1960s
Modernization
Dual economy model
‘backward’ agriculture
Community Development
Lazy peasants
1970s
1980s
Structural adjustment
Free markets
Getting prices right
Retreat of the state
Transformational approach
Rise of NGOs
Technology transfer
Redistribution with growth Rapid rural appraisal
Agricultural extension
Basic needs
(RRA)
Growth role of agric
Integrated rural develpt
Farming Systems
Green revolution (start) State agric policies
Research (FSR)
Rational peasants
State led credit
Food security & famine
Urban bias
analysis
Induced innovation
RD as process and not
Green revolution (cont)
product
Rural growth linkages
Women in Develpt
(WID)
Poverty Alleviation
1990s
2000s
Micro credit
Participatory rural
appraisal (PRA)
Actor-oriented RD
Stakeholder analysis
Rural safety nets
Gender & Devlpt (GAD)
Environment and
sustainability
Sustainable livelihoods
Poverty reduction
Good governance
Decentralization
Critique of participation
Sector-wide approaches
Social protection
Poverty eradication
Influence by Ideological Paradigm shifts
Neo-classical economics- well functioning markets versus
market distortions and ‘imperfections’;
New institutional economics- linking equity and productivity
Livelihoods- a developmentalist version: development as a
livelihood improvement and poverty reduction;
Livelihoods- a welfarist version: poverty alleviation, and social
protection;
Radical political economy- development as agrarian
transformation;
Marxism- the agrarian question, focusing on the transition to
capitalism in agriculture (Cousins and Scoones, 2010)
REDISTRIBUTIVE JUSTICE
 The WCARRD (World Conference on Agrarian Reform and Rural
Development) asserts that the transformation of rural life must be
pursued by policies which allowed growth to be reached in an
equitable way, through redistribution of the economic and
political power and people’s participation;
 Meeting constitutional commitment and moral obligation for
redress & social cohesion (Deracialization of commercial
farmland and advancement of women’s rights in communal,
family & household land);
 Walker (in Ntsebeza & Hall 2007:134) states that land reform can
make a contribution to economic development at both
household and societal level, but one cannot assume that it is a
cure for deeply entrenched problems of poverty, inequality and
social dislocation.
South African Case Study
Settlement patterns
Bantustans
Provinces
20
Population by type of region
Mostly former Bantustan
Secondary cities
Mostly commercial farming areas
Metros
45
40
Millions of people
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
1995
2008
Africans
1995
2008
Others (white, Coloured, Asian)
Quantec
The economy by region
1,000
Other (utilities, construction,
business services, etc.)
900
Government and community
services
800
700
Finance and insurance
600
Trade and catering
500
Manufacturing
400
300
Mining
200
Agriculture, forestry, fishing
100
Metros
Secondary
cities
Mostly
Mostly
commercial
former
farming areas Bantustan
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
metro
secondary city
small towns in commercial farming areas
mostly former Bantustan
paraffin or candles for
lighting
paraffin, coal or other
for cooking
wood for cooking
bucket or none
pit or chemical toilet
over 200 metres to
water
unimproved water
(including rain tank
and vendor)
traditional
informal
Percentage of households in region
Household amenities by region
CPS 2007
BACKGROUND – RSA RURAL DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES
 The first rural development policy initiatives came directly after
the launch of the Reconstruction and Development Programme
(RDP) in 1995 by the Ministry in the Office of the President with
the release of a discussion document entitled Rural
Development Strategy of the Government of National Unity.
Renewed efforts to design a rural strategy were launched under
the auspices of the Rural Task Team of the RDP office. This
process led to the publication of The Rural Development
Framework by the Department of Land Affairs in May 1997. This
framework focused on rural infrastructure, public administration,
local government, and rural non-farm employment, but it was not
confirmed as government strategy for rural development.
BACKGROUND – RSA RURAL DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES

The Integrated Sustainable Rural-Development Strategy (ISRDS)
 Confirmed by cabinet as a government strategy following President Mbeki’s State of the
Nation Address in 1999.
 The ISRDS mainly draws from the Sustainable Rural Livelihoods (SRL) approach with
strong emphasis on the “poverty agenda”. According to a 2001 IDT Report the ISRDS
was designed to realise a vision that would “attain socially cohesive and stable rural
communities with viable institutions, sustainable economies and universal access to
social amenities, able to attract and retain skilled and knowledgeable people, who are
equipped to contribute to growth and development”.

The Comprehensive Rural Development Programme (CRDP): Introduced in 2009 by
President Zuma with the new Department of Rural Development and Land Reform. The key
thrust of the framework is an integrated programme of rural development, land reform and
agrarian change .
 It is therefore fitting and appropriate, that the strategy of the Department of Rural
Development and Land Reform be 'Agrarian Transformation' - interpreted to denote 'a
rapid and fundamental change in the relations (systems and patterns of ownership and
control) of land, livestock, cropping and community.' The objective of the strategy is 'social
cohesion and development.' Minister Nkwinti’s Budget Speech 24 March 2010
Comprehensive Rural Development Programme (CRDP)
Minister Nkwinti’s 2010 Budget Speech highlighted that

The CRDP has set us on a new course for post colonial reconstruction and development.
This shall be achieved through coordinated and broad based agrarian transformation which
will focus on:

Building communities through Social mobilization and institution building;

Strategic investment in old and new social, economic, ICT infrastructure and public amenities and
facilities coordinated through the Rural Infrastructure Programme;

A new land reform programme implemented in the context of the reviewed Land Tenure System;

Rendering of professional and technical services as well as effective and sustainable resource
management through the component of Geo-spatial Services, Technology Development and Disaster
Management.


Effective provision of cadastral and deeds registry as well as Surveys and Mapping services
The Department is committed to the achievement of outcome 7 of the 12 outcomes pursued
by Government over the MTSF period and that is: 'vibrant, equitable and sustainable rural
communities'. The success of this Department over the MTSF period will be measured
through delivery on the following outputs:

Sustainable land reform;

Food security for all;

Rural development and sustainable livelihoods; and,

Job creation linked to skills training.
(www.dla.gov.za)
BACKGROUND: RSA LAND REFORM
The South African White Paper on Land Reform
The central thrust of land policy is the land reform programme. This has three aspects:
redistribution; land restitution; and land tenure reform.
 Redistribution refers to the transfer of land to recipients who were not necessarily original
owners, but were nonetheless dispossessed of land under apartheid law. It also aims to
provide the disadvantaged and the poor with access to land for residential and productive
purposes. Its scope includes the urban and rural poor, labour tenants, farm workers and new
entrants to agriculture.
 Land restitution refers to the transfer of land back to original owners or their descendents. It
covers cases of forced removals that took place after 1913. This is being dealt with by a Land
Claims Court and Commission established under the Restitution of Land Rights Act 22 of
1994.
 Land tenure reform is led by a vision of flexible tenure regime that legally secures the rights
of people occupying and using land, balancing these rights equitably against rights of
owners. The intention is to improve tenure security of all South Africans and to accommodate
diverse forms of land tenure, including types of communal tenure. According to Hall (2007)
tenure reform policy was intended to address the chaotic state of land administration in the
communal areas of former homelands & coloured reserves.


Target: transferring 30% of arable land from large white-owned farms to black small- holders
(Extended to 2014).

Source; The South African White Paper on Land Reform, www.dla.gov.za, Ntsebeza & Hall (2007)
Tenure System Reform
Roads, bridges,
energy, water
services, sanitation,
library, crèches, early
childhood centres,
Police stations,
clinics, houses,
small rural towns
revitalisation.
1. State Land
 Don’t sell – lease hold
• Quitrent:
(Perpetual or limited time)
• Social infrastructure
• ICT infrastructure
• Amenities
• Facilities
• Tenure system review
• Strategic land reform
interventions
• Restitution
3.Foreign land ownership
 Precarious tenure
‘A rapid and fundamental change in
the relations (systems and patterns
of ownership and control) of land,
livestock, cropping and community.’
Food Security:
Strategic Partnerships:
• Mentoring
•Co-management
•Share equity
 Modalities being
worked out between the
Dept and farmers; big and
small
Economic infrastructure
inputs:
• Agri-parks, fencing,
seeds, fertilizer,
extension support ,
etc
Economic infrastructure
inputs:
•Abattoirs, animal handling
facilities, feed-lots,
mechanising stock water
dams, dip tanks,
windmills, fencing,
harvesters, etc
4. Institution
Land Management
Commission
• Power to subpoena
• Power to inquire on own
volition or at the instance
of interested parties
• Power to verify/validate
title deeds
• Demand declaration of
Land holdings
• Grant amnesty or
prosecute
Phase III
Phase II
Source: Rural Dev Dept (2010)
2. Private Land
 Free hold with limited
extent
• State the first right of
refusal when selling
Phase I
Meeting Basic
Human Needs
Enterprise
development
Agro-village industries;
credit facilities
Rural development
measurables
28
GAPS: Asset-based Empowerment
 The World Development Report (WDR 2008) indicates that
The asset endowments of rural households have been low for
generations, and they continue to decline in places. Market and
government failures affecting the returns on those assets are
pervasive. Adverse shocks often deplete already limited assets,
and the inability to cope with shocks induces households to
adopt low risk, low-return activities (2008:72).
Asset-based empowerment, the causal variables
critical for self-reliance and sustainability (human
capabilities, resource access and conditions of
exchange): Human, social, natural, financial and
physical capital;
External environment
Impact on assets
Situation of rural people
Capital assets
Natural
Vulnerability context
Changes in:
•Resource stocks
•Climate
•Population density
•Conflict
•Political change
•Technology
•Markets
•Disease incidence
Impact on vulnerability
Social
Physical
influence
Livelihood outcomes desired
•More income
•Improved well-being
•Reduced vulnerability
•Improved food security
Livelihood strategies chosen
•Natural resource based
•(on-farm, off-farm)
•Non-NR based (eg rents)
Implementation
•Partnership arrangements
Impact on livelihoods
Human
Financial
influence
Institutions
Structures
•Levels of government
•NGOs/CBOs
•Private sector
•Traditional
•Donors
Processes
•Laws
•Policies
•Incentives
•Services
Negotiation on agreed common
objectives, eg for projects or
services
Negotiation on appropriate
processes and structures for
the strategies
Deciding appropriate roles,
degree of self-help
Impact on institutions
Measuring Human Development
Towards a New Human Development Dashboard
Empirical Measure
Components of Human Development
Health
Average Level
Education
Material Goods
Human Development Index
Political
Social
Empowerment Indicators
Deprivation
Multidimensional Poverty Index
Vulnerability
Indicators of environmental sustainability, human security, well-being , decent work
Inequality
Inequality-adjusted HDI
Gender Inequality Index
Source: Pritchett (2010) in UN HDR (2010)
Value chain System
Source: Roduner (2007)
System Failure: Interdependency of
rural infrastructure
Telecommunication, agro-industry, rural electrification, and other
development initiatives for rural areas are often dependent upon
each other.
 development of rural telecommunications programs is dependent upon
electricity resources in one form or another;
 appropriate and adequate water pumping requires power for agricultural
sector expansion and development;
 cottage and other rural industries and agro-processing under the form of
small rural businesses can increase the productivity by using mechanized/
electrified technologies; and
 quality of education and healthcare delivery systems increase proportionally
with improvements in RE and other infrastructure investment (CORE,
2003).
Factors Affecting Success
(Leite & Avilla 2006)

The presence of a strong governmental structure, accompanied by a political will
and by legal security for the new landowners;

A favourable macroeconomic policy (interest rates, exchange rates, agricultural
policy);

Technical assistance, support to the organization and financial assistance of the
beneficiaries (in a non-centralized and non-bureaucratic form);

Administrative experience of the beneficiaries and the requisite infrastructure
around their farm holdings;

Economic encouragements to the beneficiaries (being their own supervisors )
supporting productivity and the creation of non-agricultural enterprises;

The creation of social capital with the involvement of the beneficiaries in the
decisions concerning them;

An effective agricultural policy (good land registration systems, land planning and
taxation).
RURAL DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES
 Review land reform and agriculture as a defining concept of Rural Development (delink)
 Redefine the driving agenda and the interconnectedness of land reform, agricultural




transformation and Rural Development
Recognise and clarify the spatial, policy, institutional and relational linkages (rural-urban
linkages, household-community-municipal-provincial-national, rural development policy
& macroeconomic framework)
Rural Demography & Livelihood Patterns: Addressing Poverty and Inequality. Poverty
reduction as a means, not an end, a component of, but not a rural development strategy.
Households as an entry point and unit of analysis for enhancing capabilities and
sustainable development.
The value of the rural space & sustainable resources use: Leveraging potential to sustain
livelihoods, nurture socio-cultural coexistence and enhance productive potential.
Diverse Sector Strategies (beyond farming): Critical – Sector strategy contributing to
redress, as a growth-oriented and development mechanism (e.g. agriculture) rather than
an overarching driving agenda. Agrarian transformation is thus viewed as a strategic
transformative mechanism (means and method) and not an overall macro-framework for
sustainable rural development (the end).
OPPORTUNITIES FOR RESEARCH REALIGNMENT
 Research agenda review to refocus National, Regional and Continental Agendas
 G20 Nations Commit to Growth, Aid for Poor Countries (Nov 2010)
The new "development consensus" calling for "inclusive, sustainable and resilient
growth" to reduce poverty, asserting that foreign aid "remain(s) essential to the
development of most low-income-countries.“
The Leaders identified "nine key pillars" which required action to remove bottlenecks
to growth in developing countries.
These are:
Infrastructure, human resource development, trade, private investment and job
creation, food security, growth with resilience, financial inclusion, domestic
resource mobilization and knowledge sharing.