South Africa’s expropriation law: what it’s all about

When South Africa officially became a constitutional democracy on 4 February 1997, it heralded profound change in the way the country was governed. Once a racially oppressive pariah state, it became a state based on freedom, human rights and the rule of law.

All laws not in keeping with the new Constitution had to be changed to give effect to the rights enshrined in the new Constitution.

One such law is the Expropriation Act, which governs how government can acquire land owned by private citizens for public purposes, such as building roads and railways. The Constitution changed the compensation standard from requiring government to pay “market value” for such land to