In Search of Land and Housing in the New South Africa : The Case of Ethembalethu

This study analyzes the difficulties a
poor community experienced in accessing peri-urban land in
South Africa. This community, composed largely of laid-off
farm workers, wanted to buy their own farm in a peri-urban
area west of Johannesburg to establish a mixed-use
settlement. The Ethembalethu 250 families started their own
savings scheme to make their dream a reality. Millions of
black South Africans live in the peri-urban areas. However,
government programs, development planning, and environmental
requirements, and the current land and housing markets do
not allow them realize their aspirations. Based on this case
study, the authors suggest the following areas for policy
and program reform: (i) overcoming reluctance and resistance
by municipalities and prospective neighbors to low-income
settlements; (ii) making land use planning in municipalities
explicitly pro-poor; (iii) restructuring the land market;
(iv) realigning planning processes; (v) designing a land and
housing program targeted to peri-urban areas; (vi)
re-engineering program implementations; and (vii) freeing up
and building capacity. The study proposes the establishment
of a national task force to ensure appropriate follow-up.