The PDAL Bill seeks, among other things, to provide that the Subdivision of Agricultural Land Act (SALA) of 1970 applies to all agricultural land in the country; to provide principles for the management of agricultural land; to provide for agricultural land evaluation and classification; to provide for the preparation, purpose and content of provincial agricultural sector plans; and to provide for the declaration of protected agricultural areas.
The Bill further aims to address SALA shortcomings and other identified weaknesses. SALA is currently administered only by the national Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development and, as such, does not conform to the constitutional requirements of cooperative governance where national, provincial and local spheres of government have a role to play. Furthermore, SALA is only applicable to privately owned land and thus, the department cannot protect high-value agricultural land owned by the state, statutory bodies, communal land and land administered by traditional authorities.
11 сен 2023
