S.Africa may lose more investors over land reforms

By Olivia Kumwenda

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - A key South African farmers' group on Wednesday warned of an exodus of foreign investors from the country's agriculture sector if policies including one limiting foreign land ownership are implemented.

Agri SA, due to submit its own proposals to the government after a two-day meeting, said South Africa could harm its agriculture sector if land proposals in a government green paper are applied.

Agri SA has said some of the proposals deal with limitations on private land ownership, a right of first refusal in favour of the state when land is offered for sale and the regulation of ownership of land by foreigners and a new land ownership bill.

The government was due to present the green paper to parliament on Monday but it did not do so and no reasons were given.

"We have seen a major outflow of investment in agriculture in the last few years because of the way land reforms have been implemented," Agri SA deputy president Theo de Jager told Reuters in an interview.

"We see that if this is not dealt with cautiously, we might lose even more foreign investment."

A new South Africa draft land policy proposes limits to land ownership by its own citizens and foreigners, as part of plans to resuscitate its flagging land reform programme, under which it had hoped to transfer a third of all farmland to blacks by 2014.

De Jager said without clarity on the contents of the land reform policy, it would be difficult for the country to lure foreign investors.