(Published - 21 September 2018)

Professor Ruth Hall - from the University of the Western Cape’s (UWC) Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies (PLAAS) - has been appointed to an advisory panel on land reform by President Cyril Ramaphosa.

The panel will advise the Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) on land reform on a broad range of policy matters including restitution, redistribution, tenure security and agricultural support. The panel comprises 10 members who are eminently qualified by virtue of academic background, professional experience, social entrepreneurship or activism related to the agricultural economy and land policy.

“The panel is expected to provide perspectives on land policy in the context of persisting land inequality, unsatisfactory land and agrarian reform and uneven urban land development,” a statement issued by the Presidency read.

“The panel is mandated to review, research and suggest models for government to implement a fair and equitable land reform process that redresses the injustices of the past, increases agricultural output, promotes economic growth and protects food security.”

Professor Hall said: “The land issue in South Africa is at a crucial point and it
is important to gather the best of academia, research, private sector and civil society, and come together to solve land reform problems. We are in problem solving mode and I am honoured to be a part of this panel.”

The University of the Western Cape’s (UWC) Rector and Vice-Chancellor, Professor Tyrone Pretorius, said he was immensely proud of Professor Hall's appointment.

"I have given UWC's Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies - better known as PLAAS - the mandate to play a pivotal thought leadership role on the complex issue of land reform in South Africa. As Rector and Vice-Chancellor, I am very proud of the work that is done by PLAAS and Professor Hall."

During the briefing President Ramaphosa thanked all the members of the panel for agreeing to serve on it.

“Although the members of the panel are drawn from very different areas of expertise and perspectives, they are united by a shared vision of a just and equitable future for all South Africans,” the President said.

ABOUT PROF RUTH HALL

Professor Ruth Hall - a researcher and professor at the University of the Western Cape’s Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies. Her research work in South Africa and the continent spans over 23 years and has played an integral role in shaping discourse on South African land reform, beginning with the constitutional negotiations. Her key research interests and focus have been on land redistribution, restitution claims and farm workers.

ABOUT PLAAS

PLAAS is widely considered to be the leading research body in Southern Africa in relation to issues of land, natural resource management and rural development. It is a university-based research institute established in 1995 at the University of the Western Cape (UWC), and has an impressive track record of high quality research, teaching, and policy engagement for more than two decades.

Below is a video of Professor Ruth Hall:
Video: Harriet Box