The Portfolio Committee on Land Reform and Rural Development expressed outrage on Wednesday after Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana rejected their request for a presentation on expenditure trends related to land reform funding.
In a letter to the committee, Godongwana emphasised that it would be inappropriate as the efficient management of fiscal resources falls primarily under the purview of the department itself
Godongwana also said the funding arrangements related to institutions and service delivery were the core component of policy development and was within the mandate of the department.
“For the National Treasury to present on funding models to support programmes and delivery would undermine policy development, the mandate of the DLRRD and the department is best placed to present on this.
“I believe that clear delineation of responsibilities strengthens Parliament’s oversight function. However, in light of the above, I request that the National Treasury be excused from the meeting and will not attend,” said Godongwana.
His refusal sparked a heated debate among committee members.
Chairperson Albert Mncwango underscored the necessity of engaging with Treasury to understand the rationale behind the budget reductions that have hindered land reform efforts.
“The department has been suffering progressive declines in budget cuts over the years, and we wanted to engage with Treasury to explore how these reductions affect the National Development Plan’s goals.”
DA MP Matlhodi Maseko said she felt insulted by Godongwana’s refusal to attend the meeting and responded in a manner that suggested they did not know what they were doing.
“There is a reason we wanted to engage the Treasury. We try to diagnose what is the problem for Treasury to cut the funding,” Maseko said.
She urged the committee to write back to Godongwana and indicate that they still want to engage with him on the matter.
“We can summon him and force him to come in here and not be undermined as if we don’t know what we are doing,” added Maseko.
ANC MP Rachel Cecilia Adams agreed with Maseko and stressed the importance of the engagement with the National Treasury on the land reform budget.
“The minister has to be summoned to give us the information we really need on the budget of land reform and redistribution,” Adams said.
MK Party MP Zwelakhe Mthethwa said Godongwana misunderstood the context in which the National Treasury was invited.
Mncwango said the National Treasury must come and explain the progressive reduction of the department’s budget allocation.
“We will write back, express our disquiet and insist that we still want to engage them for the sake of land reform and rural development. We will be doing that before Parliament rises,” he said.
In its presentation to the committee, the Financial and Fiscal Commission said the department achieved a consistently high spending performance over recent financial years, generally in excess of 90%.
Challenges faced by the department over the years included capacity constraints, procurement delays (particularly ICT), slow land acquisition processes, and slow implementation of farmer support programmes.
Its rural development programme recorded R132.6 million in under-spending in the 2024/5 financial year.
This happened as the restitution sub-programme reflected challenges in processing land restitution claims and under spent by R663.7 million during the same period.
The commission recommended the consolidation of conditional grants aimed at smallholder farmers and accessing other various additional funding sources and implementation support available for the department.
“The Financial and Fiscal Commission recommends that multiple state organs, together with provincial departments, develop a robust funding model with clear and measurable targets.”
The Development Bank of Southern Africa, the Land Bank, Agricultural Research Council and Council for Scientific and Industrial Research were well-positioned to provide wide-ranging support to fast-track progress in achieving policy objectives and Medium Term Development Planning goals, the commission said.
