Assessment of settlement models for engagement of communities inforest land under claim in Jessievale and Roburna communities in Mpumalanga, South Africa

Abstract

An estimated 40% of privately owned plantations are subject to land claims, and 70% of State-ownedplantations are under claim in South Africa. The study therefore identified the settlement models forfuture engagement of communities in forestry with forest land under claim. In total, 231 householdswere purposively sampled at Jessievale (n = 100) and Roburna (n = 131) where the primary data wascollected through questionnaire administered to household heads. In general, 70% of the respondentsindicated that they would opt for a settlement model that involves forestry. About 27% chose joint venturemodel, whereas 19% chose the lease agreement model. The joint venture model was the most preferreddue to its ability to transfer the land to the claimants, in addition to opportunities such as transfer ofmanagement skills, job creation and empowerment of local communities. Age and possession of forestryskills significantly (p < 0.01) contribute to the choice of the different models. While communities wereinterested in getting their land back, they were not fully utilising the small portions of land currentlyavailable to them for agriculture. Hence, demand for land may be driven more by other land use optionssuch as land for expanding new homes and grazing. In conclusion, communities were still interested inforestry as a land use option. However, future forestry models should clearly address land ownership andaccommodate other land use options.