MHLAMBANYATSI – Rubble is what remains on sites where people like Maria Nkambule have lived for decades.
But it is not because a storm hit the houses or they were demolished in forced removals – no. Instead, this is part of a voluntary programme to relocate farm dwellers and give them decent houses they can call home.
Montigny Investments, the company behind Usutu Forest Products, has spent over E3 million to voluntarily relocate 10 families from its plantation at Mhlambanyatsi, with an additional 10 applications still being processed.
There has been a total of about 56 farm dwellers on the company’s territory.
The programme, which offers between E150 000 for traditional stick-and-mud homes and up to E400 000 for brick structures, is part of a broader humanitarian drive to resettle farm dwellers to areas where they can access clean water, electricity and community services.
Speaking exclusively about the programme, Montigny’s Head of Risk and Community Relations, Sihle Mavuso, explained that the company inherited a community of farm dwellers when it acquired the sawmill operations in the early 2000s. Some of these individuals had signed farm dweller agreements with previous owners, with one such agreement extending as far as 2018.
However, when attempts were made to develop the area, it became clear that the land is registered as a farm and private property, meaning no electricity or water infrastructure could legally be installed. “We informed them that if they were to continue staying there, it is not safe,” Mavuso said.
“This is a forest. If a fire starts, it would be difficult to control. It could erase this village. The whole plantation would not be safe. Also, there is no electricity or even water for these people living there.”
The company first attempted to find alternative land immediately outside the plantation boundary to relocate the families, but that proved impossible.
A further complication arose when it was discovered that none of the dwellers had a chief’s code for the area, because there is no traditional chief stationed on the plantation. All of them held identification linked to chiefs from other areas.
“We realised that all of them had identification with chief codes from elsewhere. None of them has a chief code for this area because there is no chief here,” Mavuso added.
In response, Montigny introduced a voluntary relocation programme structured around a series of community meetings. The company helped the community establish its own farm dweller structures, including electing a chairperson to represent residents in negotiations.
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