South African Institute of International Affairs
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Displaying 6 - 10 of 20Property and prosperity: reforming landholding in Africa
How Africans access – or ‘own’ – their landholdings is a matter of profound importance for the continent’s future. It touches on social welfare as well as prospects for economic development. This policy briefing provides an overview of the land question, drawing heavily on the Country Review Reports (CRRs) of the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM). It argues that weak property rights are a major problem for Africa, but cautions against an assumption that full titling is an immediate solution.
South Africa’s drought preparedness in the water sector: too little too late?
South Africa experiences droughts on a regular basis, often associated with significant negative impacts on society and the economy. Droughts can be forecast, and South African climate scientists have been developing computer-generated models to forecast El Niño-induced droughts. Even so, there is a tendency to implement remedial interventions when droughts occur, rather than implementing proactive and preventative strategies. Being reactive seems to be a defining feature of South African water-resource management. This has also been the case with the 2015/2016 drought.
A stitch in time: preventive diplomacy and the Lake Malawi dispute
A low-intensity dispute between Malawi and Tanzania threatens regional peace as the two countries contest the demarcation of their national boundaries at Lake Malawi. This long-standing dispute became more urgent when in 2011 the Malawian government issued licences for oil prospecting beneath the lake’s northern shoreline. Although tensions have waxed and waned in accordance with the respective countries’ election cycles, both seek a speedy resolution of this dispute.
A promise betrayed: policies and practice penew the rural dispossession of land, rights and prospects
South Africans assumed on 27 April 1994 that their vote for freedom would erase the ethnic enclaves known as ‘Bantustans’ or ‘homelands’ and guarantee a common citizenship with equal rights under one law. Officially, the 10 homelands were dismantled under the interim constitution that introduced democracy in 1994, paving the way for the reversal of the dispossession that had been entrenched by the 1913 and 1936 land acts. Instead, 20 years later, a series of laws, bills and policies proposes a separate legal regime for people within the boundaries of those former Bantustans.
Corporate social responsibility in South Africa’s mining industry: an assessment
The corporate social responsibility (CSR) agenda has been a part of the global debate on socio-economic development for many decades. Countless claims have been made that CSR can contribute towards more inclusive development and the alleviation of poverty. This briefing examines the concept and role of CSR in the mining industry of South Africa. The mining case study reviewed here demonstrates that key implementation challenges are a lack of co-ordination and alignment with the government’s development plans, at both national and local level, coupled with weak monitoring and evaluation.