The article discusses the prospect alleviating the legal and social circumstances of the farm worker in the SADC region through the SADC’s SLRSF – a regional institutional mechanism dedicated to the SADC region’s land question. The farm worker in the SADC region constitutes a class that historically possesses insecure and non-registrable rights and interests characterised as personal and non-proprietary. This in turn places the farm worker class in a precarious risk prone position with damaging effects socially, economically and developmentally. Contemporary responses to the situation of the farm worker have been mixed as illustrated by the different legal frameworks applicable in South Africa and Malawi. Since the farm worker’s question is primarily identified as an example of the damaging effects of insecure tenure and of livelihoods under constant threat of unregulated eviction an attempt is made to locate the farm worker’s situation within the international human rights framework provided for under Articles 17 of International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and 11 the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Civil Rights. In the light of inadequate responses to the contemporary farm workers’ position in the SDAC region the SLRSF’s initiative aimed at stimulating research on ‘farm workers and land rights’ and on ‘prospects for SADC land policy norms’ is a welcome development. The article argues that even though it faces significant challenges in norm formation and inculcation the SLRSF provides a forum through which the international human rights norms which set basic minimum standards relevant to farm workers may be channeled to ultimately influence structures, procedures and products of the national land reform programmes of the SADC region.