Chapter 2 The challenge of evidence-based strategy development: Linkages between evidence, policy and practice

4 Assembling the evidence

In the process of assembling a body of evidence to review the status quo and support the development of strategy, SDC has drawn upon a range of qualitative research methods, sources of information and theoretical perspectives. We have put together a multidisciplinary team with a range of professional backgrounds and significant experience in land reform and rural development. We have utilised every opportunity to develop a co-analysis of the situation on the ground together with land reform participants, officials from DLA, NDA, municipalities and relevant national and provincial departments. The development of the Strategy draws heavily on the ideas and experiences of those working at ground level in a variety of different land reform contexts across South Africa. The Strategy also draws on regional and international experiences of land reform and different approaches to deliver SIS services. The evidence is drawn from: diagnostic case studies that cover different elements of the land reform programme – Restitution claims in different contexts, LRAD and Commonage projects; thematic reviews and comparative analysis of the international land reform experience; a field-based learning programme that has involved land reform practitioners from different departments and provincial contexts in reviews of selected projects to identify key lessons and implications for national strategy development; a programme of technical support to selected projects designed to provide evidence of practical interventions required and institutional arrangements necessary for effective delivery of services; a series of consultative forums that brought together key provincial actors responsible for supporting land reform projects post transfer to share ideas and to think strategically and critically about improving SIS services; a review of the policy, legislation and regulations that impact upon different dimensions of land reform implementation including intergovernmental relations, planning and township establishment, environmental management as well as the legal instruments and institutions which define and secure the new owners' and users' rights in, and access to, land; and commissioned research on business models and institutional arrangements to best effect the delivery of a suite of SIS services including interim arrangements for the holding and management of land prior to its takeover by the new owners. We are confident that we have been able to develop a coherent analysis of the key issues impacting on the success of the land reform programme in South Africa with a particular focus on the provision of post-transfer support. The purpose of this analysis is to provide a firm foundation for the development of strategy. We collate the key findings from our enquiries in Chapter 4.