The role of local government in common pool resource management: the case of municipal commonage in the northern cape

Abstract

Municipal commonage has the potential to make a major contribution to land redistribution in South Africa. During the Apartheid era, land under the control of local government was leased out to commercial farmers at commercial rates, which ensured an important source of income for municipalities. Post-1994, municipalities have been tasked by the Department of Land Affairs with making land available to the previously disadvantaged and thus managing and administering the commonage for purposes of poverty alleviation.