The billions of rands needed each year for the next 15 years to settle new land claims will come from state funds, says the land reform minister.
State funds will be used for the billions of rands needed each year for the next 15 years to settle new land claims, Land Reform Minister Gugile Nkwinti said on Wednesday.
"It will be funded through the fiscus," he told members of Parliament's rural development and land reform portfolio committee.
"Treasury has actually underscored the fact that this is a government programme. It does not require a stand-alone budget; it requires a normal budget," he said.
Earlier, the committee heard that an estimated 397 000 valid land claims might be lodged when the Restitution of Land Rights Amendment Bill, which aims to extend the cut-off date for lodging a claim for restitution, is enacted.
Chief land claims commissioner Nomfundo Gobodo told MPs: "It may cost R129-billion to R179-billion to settle these claims, if settled within a 15-year period."
This is equivalent to between R8.6-billion and R11.9-billion a year. The amendment Bill, once it has been passed into law, will re-open the land claims process for a five-year period, to end on December 31 2018. READ MORE
Source: Mail & Guardian #IFAMAFRICA
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