In many parts of the global South heritage is one of the major drivers for destination development. This case study builds upon the existing international scholarship on heritage as a driver for local economic development. The focus on the study is Mahikeng and the wider Ngaka Modiri Molema District in the North West province where there is a wealth of underutilised local cultural and heritage assets. This valuable asset base stems from the area’s history of multi-cultural interactions and with important historical events that occurred in the area relating to the colonial town of Mafeking; the Siege of Mafeking, the founding of the Boy Scout movement and the Anglo-Boer War (South African War); the life of David Livingstone; the life and experiences of prominent African leaders like Sol Plaatje and Dr (Ngaka) Modiri Molema; and, African cultural heritage. However, many heritage assets in the area are underutilised due to the peripheral location of the town, poor marketing and low visitor numbers, as well as, poor maintenance. Arguably, Mahikeng and its surrounds enjoys a rich heritage asset base which offers latent opportunities for a future expansion of heritage tourism and an expanded contribution of tourism for the local economy.
In recent years geographers have researched the problems of many rural areas of the third world. However, analysis of rural and agricultural development in the Bantustans of South Africa has been conspicuously absent. Although mythically 'independent', the Bantustans have their own Departments of Agriculture, as well as parastatal bodies, which develop and implement agricultural policies. This paper examines agricultural policy in the Bophuthatswana Bantustan, which is largely based on increasing food production for 'national' self-sufficiency through the establishment of agricultural development projects. The effects of the implementation of this programme on a specific rural community, the village of Dinokana, are discussed. Two irrigation based projects were implemented in Dinokana in the early 1980's. The project planners did not seem to be concerned about the existence of an 'indigenous' irrigation system which had been the foundation for agricultural development at Dinokana for several decades, and which could have been revived and upgraded. This suggests that there is a need for agricultural planners to have a detailed historial knowledge of local African agriculture. Geographers could play a valuable role here, by uncovering the dynamics of past systems of African agricultural production, in particular focusing on patterns of rural resource management.
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