CHAPTER THREE: TRACING THE DEVELOPMENT OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT POLICIES IN POST-1994 SOUTH AFRICA
3.5. RURAL DEVELOPMENT IN POST-1994 SOUTH AFRICA
An analysis of the literature on rural development in post-apartheid South Africa presents some interesting interpretation of how rural development is currently perceived and defined. Ashley and Maxwell (2001:395) view rural development as a failed and deplorable project because the problems of rural development are not well understood and therefore, lack a convincing policy narrative. They point out that:
“Put briefly, it is that the crisis in rural development reflects a loss of confidence in the rural development ‘project’ which has for long been central to the development effort. In policy terms, rural development has lacked a convincing narrative, offering manageable and internationally agreed solutions to clearly well-understood problems” (quoted in Mahlati 2011:77).
The struggle to define rural development and articulate problems that rural areas face compromised the process of formulating rural development policies and led to the prescription of inappropriate solutions. The ISRDS document (2000) highlights how the lack of an agreed definition of rural areas affected the rationale and planning of rural development policies in post-apartheid South Africa. A review of the literature on rural development policies also reveals how policy makers struggled to capture the complexity of rural areas and their problems in post-apartheid South Africa. For example, the RDP base document (1994:14-15) only prescribed what needed to be done to achieve social transformation including the development of rural areas. In addition, the RDP base document (1994) considers rural development along the improvement of the quality of rural life. It identifies land reform and the creation of easy access to health care, education, welfare services, the courts and promotion of capacity-
92 building programmes as the key areas to address in attempts to reduce rural poverty and improve the quality of life in rural areas. The RDP base document also notes that, rural development is essentially about service provision and transfers, and about opening up space for rural people to participate in the policy making processes as well as the implementation of development programmes (RDP, 1994:14). Finally, rural development also includes the democratisation of rural areas so that rural people can elect their own representatives and participate in matters that affect their life.
Building on the ideals of the RDP, the ISRDS (2000) developed a more comprehensive definition, which describes rural development as a multi-dimensional process that encompasses:
“…improved provision of services, enhanced opportunities for income generation and local economic development, improved physical infrastructure, social cohesion and physical security within rural communities, active representation in local political processes and effective provision for the vulnerable” (ISRDS 2000:23).
This description of rural development is in sync with the vision and objectives of the RDP base document, which focuses on transforming rural environments and creating opportunities for rural people. Rural development is interpreted as a process that seeks to empower people living in the countryside to determine their destiny and take control of their lives. This is broader than poverty alleviation through social programmes and transfers. Thus, rural development is perceived as a process that facilitates change of environment, motivates rural people to invest in themselves, and identifies opportunities and acts on them to ameliorate the affected citizens’
livelihoods. Motebang’s (2005) view that rural development in post-apartheid South Africa is perceived as a multifaceted process that seeks to improve service provision and infrastructure in rural areas is instructive here. Rural development indeed seeks to develop rural economies and create opportunities for income generation, and a process that empowers rural people to play a meaningful role in political and decision making processes.
Similarly, the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform (DRDLR) in its Strategic Plan of 2010-2013 defines rural development as a process that enables rural people to take control of their destiny and deal effectively with poverty through proper use and management of natural resources. The strategic plan also describes rural development as a participatory process through which rural dwellers learn, over time and through their own experiences, how to adapt their indigenous knowledge to their changing environment (DRDLR, 2010-2013). As
93 a participatory process, rural development fosters a change of attitude within the rural people and motivates them to both get actively involved in their development and take full ownership of the process and its outcomes. The DRDLR (2010-2013) asserts that, rural development requires the support and commitment of various spheres of government, various stakeholders from both the private sector and civil society organisations, and the rural communities themselves to achieve the vision of a better life for all people living in rural areas.
The broader definition of rural development incorporates variables such as empowerment of the poor, freedom, participation, determination of one’s destiny and taking ownership and control of local resources (Korten, 1999). In this way, rural development programmes address both the material and non-material aspects of rural poverty and development. As a result, Todaro and Smith (2011) describe development as a movement away from a condition of life widely perceived as unsatisfactory toward a situation or condition of life regarded as materially and spiritually better. The condition of life that is regarded as materially and spiritually better here constitute the vision of rural development policies of the post-apartheid era.
Rural development in post-apartheid South Africa is largely presented as a reconstruction of rural areas. Its core objective is the socio-economic development that seeks to create opportunities for rural people and, improve service provision, infrastructure and social cohesion (DRDLR, 2010-2023). In its strategic plan of 2010-2013, the DRDLR identifies agriculture as the key economic driver of sustainable rural development. It presents agrarian reform as the key driver of rural development because it relates to rapid change in the use of land, livestock, cropping and rural communities. In this regard, land reform includes:
“…the establishment of rural business initiatives, agro-industries, co-operatives, cultural initiatives and vibrant local markets in rural settings, the empowerment of rural people and communities (especially women and youth), and the revitalisation of old, and revamping of new economic, social, information and communication infrastructure, public amenities and facilities in villages and small rural towns”
(DRDLR, 2009:3).
The South African Rural Development Quarterly (2014) describes rural development as “the advancement of rural communities through the improvement of rural institutions and systems, expansion of rural infrastructure, and growth in rural economic activities”. The current interpretation of rural development is broader in the sense that it addresses different sections of rural life. It recognises the role that people living in rural areas play in identifying various economic opportunities and development programmes that can benefit them the most. The
94 agency of the poor living in rural areas and their indigenous knowledge systems form part of what constitutes rural development.
The current interpretation of rural development as it is understood in post-1994 South Africa was officially adopted by the DRDLR when it was established in 2009. The interpretation incorporates the various elements that reflect different sections of rural life that need to be transformed. The DRDLR also provides a framework for implementing rural development policies (Nkwiti, 2014). Prior to 2009 this department was known as the Department of Land Affairs (DLA). The establishment of the DRDLR makes the policy responses to rural poverty and development to be more focused.
The next section provides a timeline and analysis of the policy responses to rural poverty and rural development in post-apartheid South Africa. It also considers the challenges faced in the rural development programmes.