All for One, One for All: The Interdependency of Secure Rural Land Tenure and South Africa’s Mining Economy
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.25159/2520-9515/17629Keywords:
land, mining, rights, tenure, investmentAbstract
The expansion of mining investments into rural areas of South Africa has increasingly brought them into conflict with land-insecure customary communities, whose rights are protected under interim legislation. Despite these legal safeguards, customary landholding communities remain vulnerable to dispossession, often under pressure from powerful mining corporations supported by government policies prioritising foreign investment. This vulnerability is compounded by financial and socio-political pressures that make it difficult for communities to assert their land rights effectively. This paper examines the relationship between land tenure security in rural mining areas and the stability of mining investments. It explores how insecure land tenure affects community livelihoods and investor confidence, creating an unstable investment environment due to land disputes and inadequate legal protections. These challenges are considered within the broader context of national and continental efforts to address colonial-era land dispossession while navigating the socio-economic changes driven by mining activities. This paper explores the reciprocal relationship between land tenure security and investment stability. It explores how legally recognised land tenure for customary communities can contribute to a more stable and equitable investment climate, while also considering how a stable and equitable investment climate can, in turn, strengthen land tenure security for these communities. Through this analysis, the study advocates for a consent-based participatory framework that effectively safeguards community land rights while supporting responsible and sustainable mining investments. Additionally, the paper explores the government’s reluctance to support consent-based community participation and the political and institutional barriers preventing communities from having decision-making power over their land.
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Cases
Agri South Africa v Minister of Minerals and Energy 2013 (4) SA 1 (CC).
Bakgatla-Ba-Kgafela Communal Property Association v Bakgatla-Ba-Kgafela Tribal Authority 2015 (6) SA 32 (CC).
Baleni and Others v Minister of Mineral Resources and Others 2018 ZAGPPHC 829; 2019 (1) All SA 358 (GP); 2019 (2) SA 453 (GP) (22 November 2018).
Bengwenyama Minerals (Pty) Ltd v Genorah Resources (Pty) Ltd 2011 (4) SA 113 (CC).
Doe Run Exploration SA (Pty) Ltd v Minister of Minerals and Energy 2008 ZANCHC 3 (8 February 2008).
Livison Chikutu and Others v Minister of Lands and Others 2023 (3) CCZ.
Maledu and Others v Itereleng Bakgatla Mineral Resources 2019 (2) SA 1 (CC).
Meepo v Kotze 2008 (1) SA 104 (NC).
Metal and Allied Workers Union v Hart Ltd 1985 (6) ILJ 478 (IC).
Mogale and Others v Speaker of the National Assembly and Others 2023 ZACC 14.
President of the Republic of South Africa and Another v Modderklip Boerdery (Pty) Ltd 2005 (5) SA 3 (CC).
Residents of Joe Slovo Community, Western Cape v Thubelisha Homes 2010 (3) SA 454 (CC).
Tongoane and Others v National Minister for Agriculture and Land Affairs and Others 2010 (6) SA 214 (CC).
Legislation
Abolition of Racially Based Land Measures Act 108 of 1991
Bantu Authorities Act 68 of 1951
Communal Land Rights Act 11 of 2004
Communal Land Act (CLA) of 1982. (Zimbabwe)
Communal Land Tenure Bill 2017, Government Gazette No. 40965 7 July 2017
Development Trust and Land Act 18 of 1936
Expropriation Act 63 of 1975
Extension of Security of Tenure Act 63 of 1997
Glen Grey Act 25 of 1894
Interim Protection of Informal Land Rights Act 31 of 1996
Land Acquisition Act (Chapter 20:10) of 1992 (Zimbabwe)
Land Reform (Labour Tenants) Act 3 of 1996
Land Restitution and Reform Laws Amendment Act 18 of 1999
Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act 28 of 2002
Native Administration Act 38 of 1937
Natives Land Act 27 of 1913
Natives Trust and Land Act 18 of 1936
Restitution of Land Rights Act 22 of 1994
Traditional and Khoi-San Leadership Act 3 of 2019
Traditional Leadership and Governance Framework Act 41 of 2003
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