Farming associations and experts have raised concern about the impact on South Africa's agriculture sector after executive orders signed by US President Donald Trump granting refugee status to Afrikaners. Trump signed the executive order on Saturday. Picture: Armand Hough/Independent Newspapers
Farming associations and experts in South Africa have raised concern about the impact on the agriculture sector after an Executive Order signed by US President Donald Trump granting refugee status to Afrikaners.
The order, unveiled on Saturday, has sent ripples of concern throughout the agricultural sector, prompting farming associations and experts to voice fears over food security and economic stability.
In his official statement, President Trump asserted that the US would no longer support the South African government’s alleged violations of human rights over its Land Expropriation Act and its actions, which he said undermined the US foreign policy.
The executive order not only halts US aid to South Africa but also promotes the resettlement of Afrikaner refugees, raising alarms among those invested in the nation's agricultural future.
Professor Andre Thomashausen, a renowned expert in international law from the University of South Africa, warned that the exodus of successful farmers to the US could severely threaten South Africa’s food security.
“Not even 10% of the vast farmlands transferred to new Black owners in the land restitution policy over the last 30 years have remained productive,” he said.
“The USA would gain agricultural productivity while South Africa would suffer losses, driving up food prices and increasing dependence on food imports — a particularly precarious situation given the country’s economic deficits.”
Thomashausen pinned the exodus on various factors, including increasing logistical challenges, punitive taxes, and a persistent threat of farm-related violence.
“The ANC needs to confront the root causes prompting farmers to seek refuge elsewhere,” he stated, adding that the South African Department of International Relations fails to grasp the driving forces behind Trump's executive order.
Meanwhile, political analysts are dissecting the complicated implications of this situation.
Siyabonga Ntombela from the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) said he believed that the vast majority of Afrikaners were unlikely to pursue refugee status in the US.
“Afrikaners consider themselves African, and will not accept the notion of being treated as refugees. They are proud of their heritage and unlikely to abandon the country for a perceived inferior status,” Ntombela said.
Zakhele Ndlovu, another academic from the UKZN, highlighted an interesting contradiction in Trump’s Executive Order.
“While the order supports Afrikaner resettlement, the current political climate in the US sees the exclusion of non-European immigrants,” he said.
“The potential loss of white Afrikaner farmers could significantly impact South Africa’s economy.”
Bennie van Zyl, general manager of TLU SA, welcomed the executive orders, positing them as a necessary response to the ANC’s policies, which he believes have led to the halt of US aid.
In contrast, Christo van der Rheede of the FW de Klerk Foundation expressed deep concern regarding the deteriorating relations between South Africa and the US.
“This development could undermine not only local progress but also have far-reaching economic and political consequences globally,” he said, urging constructive dialogue between the two nations.
Van der Rheede added that the Foundation wants to assure the United States leadership that no land confiscation is occurring in South Africa.
“Property rights remain intact and respected, as well as the cultural rights of all communities. No genocide based on ethnicity is taking place in South Africa, and no one is ostracised based on race, class, or religion.”
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