Making co-ownership work?: helping land reform beneficiaries access land and financial resources through equity sharing in South Africa

This brief paper argues that through co-ownership, co-operatives offer a significant pathway for poor beneficiaries to secure land, wealth and financial resources - with benefits being augmented through sound institutions, human capital development and grant support. In reviewing Farm Worker Equity Share (FWES) schemes the authors recommend a combination of institutional practices that can be used to enhance Farm Worker Equity Share schemes; some of these include:operating the scheme like a company with voting and benefit rights tradable and proportional to individual investment.not diluting workers’ interests through transferring of shares to non-workers as a result of bequests or sales to outsiders.Involving workers in the design of the FWES and its operating rules.