Briefing Paper

From ‘Willing Seller, Willing Buyer’ to a People-Driven Land Reform

“The concept of ‘willing seller, willing buyer’ has dominated the discourse on land reform in South Africa since 1994. Now,
following the national Land Summit of July 2005, it appears that government is willing to abandon this approach, but there
is little indication of what this might mean in practice. This paper explores the origins and meaning of the concept of ‘willing
seller, willing buyer’ and the alternatives that might take its place.”