In his journey across the heartlands of the Karoo, Wandile Sihlobo meets with some of the black farmers who are still waiting for title deeds on land currently owned by the state. And he laments the condition of failing municipal infrastructure that he encounters along the way.

Listen to this article 7 min Listen to this article 7 min In his Opening of Parliament Address, President Cyril Ramaphosa stated that the government "will increase funding to land reform, prioritise the transfer of state land and improve post-settlement support by strengthening the institutional capacity of responsible structures".

This profound statement is at the heart of South Africa's agricultural inclusive growth agenda. Over time, the South African government has amassed more than two million hectares of land that have never been released to beneficiaries with title deeds or long-term tradable leases. These now mostly underutilised government-owned farms were acquired through the proactive land acquisition strategy, and sat in the government landholding account.

Many black farmers we interact with on our journey tell stories of frustration and the inability to expand and commercialise farming operations because of a lack of secure access to land.

In instances where they have access to the land, the short-term leases with which the government provides them hinder access to capital and expanding their farming operations into commercial and viable businesses that could create sustainable jobs for communities.

To verify all these claims and stories, I went undercover...