The Deputy Minister of Public Works, Mr Jeremy Cronin, briefed the Committee on the preliminary responses of the Department of Public Works (DPW) to the inputs received during the public hearings on the Expropriation Bill [B4- 2015]. However, the Department had been expecting that the Committee would finalise its report on those hearings and thus did not yet have a full written response. The DPW acknowledged that there were many useful points but had not accepted all input.

The Department of Rural Development and Land Reform (DLDLR) provided a progress report on its interventions to address the challenges arising from the actions of the Rama Communal Property Association (CPA). The CPA had initiated some income generating activities on its land, which included a quarry business, and had started a museum and an entertainment centre that featured a cinema. In partnership with the Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality and private investors the CPA was in the process of developing houses on its land.

Agri SA supported orderly land reform – equitable land distribution is a prerequisite for rural stability and inclusive rural development. Agri-SA believed that expropriation should only be used as a last resort where negotiations fail. There needed to be a clear purpose for expropriation. Compensation should never be dependent on the state’s ability to pay. The land owner should always be afforded recourse to the courts to contest both the merits of the expropriation and the compensation amount.

The South African Institute of Race Relations said the Bill made it difficult for the compensation amount to be decided by a court, and the Bill did not allow the courts to examine and rule on the validity of the expropriation. The Bill tried to limit how often people could go to court about the amount of compensation. The IRR argued that 60 days was not enough time for the claimant to institute legal proceedings for the determination of the compensation, this should be extended to 180 days. Compensation should include damages for additional losses.

The purpose of this Act is to prescribe matters necessary for the observation of, prevention of, provision against, and action against earthquakes, tsunami, and volcano, earthquake-proof measures, and research and technical development to reduce earthquake disasters and volcano disasters in order to protect the life and property of the people and major infrastructure from disasters due to earthquakes, tsunami, and volcano.

This issue of Handshake focuses on
natural resource PPPs that are making a difference. In
Cartagena, Colombia, a hybrid public-private agency is
profiled that has standardized water service to residents
while restoring the coast, and in the process, contributed
to political stabilization. Around Africas Lake Victoria, an
environmental management initiative with the potential to
reduce the pollution and resource footprint of industrial

Rwanda is developing at a remarkably rapid pace, and with that development has come a multitude of corresponding changes to the orientation and use of land throughout the country. In light of these changes, law n°18/2007 of 19/04/2007 relating to expropriation in the public interest was adopted to provide clear procedures for the government to follow in the taking of privately-owned land for other uses deemed to be in the public interest.

Rwanda is developing at a remarkably rapid pace, and with that development has come a
multitude of corresponding changes to the orientation and use of land throughout the country.
In light of these changes, law n°18/2007 of 19/04/2007 relating to expropriation in the public
interest was adopted to provide clear procedures for the government to follow in the taking of
privately-owned land for other uses deemed to be in the public interest.
This law provides procedures for notice to affected landowners, the determination of public

Land is a cross-cutting theme in most contemporary development challenges. Contemporary literature shows that land governance benefits the broader administration and governance of society. Tools enabling evaluation of land governance, however, are often focuses on national or supranational levels. Ethiopia provides a case in point: rapid urbanization and urban poverty are an issue; however, limited studies assess urban land governance from a multi-stakeholder perspective. Citizens and government representatives at different levels are the sources of information.

A compendium of four doctoral theses on land administration. 

In the recent past, high profile cases involving land governance problems have been thrust into the public domain. These include the case involving the grabbing of a playground belonging to Lang’ata Road Primary School in Nairobi and the tussle over a 134 acre piece of land in Karen. Land ownership and use have been a great source of conflict among communities and even families in Kenya, a situation exacerbated by corruption.

This Act amends the Land and Titles Act by inserting a new section (142A), which makes provision with respect to resumption of fixed-term estates created under section 100 of the principal Act. The Land Board may resume all or part of the estate to use the relevant land for public purposes by: (a) giving the owner of the estate 6 months written notice of the resumption; and (b) paying the owner reasonable compensation for the resumption. The section sets out the consideration for determining the amount of reasonable compensation.

Amends: Land and Titles Act. (2005-03-21)