An Elusive Harvest: Working with Smallholder Farmers in South Africa

Detailing the undocumented work of a pioneering nongovernmental organization that actively supported disadvantaged farmers during a critical period in the country’s history, this rare account unveils the agricultural developments that enabled South Africa’s transformation into a democratic nation. From its conception in the early 1990s to its untimely demise, this invaluable documentation assesses the strengths and weaknesses of the Land Development Unit (LDU)—evaluating the organization’s philosophy and strategy, management, funding, methods used in field projects and public-awareness activities and exploring why the LDU proved to be so vulnerable an institution. Meticulously researched and culturally insightful, this revelatory account is a significant and important footnote in the often overlooked history of independent agricultural development in South Africa.