A development policy opting exclusively for value chain development and the integration of producers in modern markets overlooks the reality for the majority of smallholders, our author maintains. Policy should pay greater attention to addressing the area most small-scale producers are active in: the informal sector.

Since its independence in 1975, and most notably in the last decade, Angola has struggled to create a legal framework adequate to address the complex issues relating to the country’s land. In 2004, the country enacted a new land law1 that sought to strengthen perceived areas of weakness in prior legislation. The new law delineated and expanded a range of land rights available by concession and recognized some measure of traditional land rights.

This synthesis of our findings from an investigation of tenure risk in East, West, and Southern Africa, shows that a majority of tenure disputes are caused by the displacement of local peoples, indicating that companies and investors are not doing enough to understand competing claims to the land they acquire or lease. This failure in diligence is particularly noteworthy given that a majority of the disputes analyzed had materially significant impacts: indeed, a higher proportion of projects in Africa are financially impacted by tenure dispute than any other region in the world. 

Looking at several large-scale land deals in Mozambique, Tanzania and Zambia, this extraordinary documentary highlights the nuanced impacts of these investments. Small-scale farmers and producers, national government officials, and African policy-makers unpack the deals, showing that there are winners and losers when providing investors access to large tracts of land in Africa. For example, land deals impact differently on women and youth, and altering land regimes also impacts on access to other natural resources such as water, fish, and local indigenous vegetables.

The poster presents an overview of forestland, livelihoods and customary practices in Man Ping Village, Northern Shan State, Myanmar. This poster is one of a five village case studies produced by partner organizations during field-based training on how to document customary tenure systems, supported by MRLG.

The poster presents an overview of land, livelihoods and customary practices in Man-hsat Village, Northern Shan State, Myanmar. This poster is one of a five village case studies produced by partner organizations during field-based training on how to document customary tenure systems, supported by MRLG.

The poster presents an overview of land, livelihoods and customary practices in Myan Latt Village, Magwe Divsion, Myanmar. This poster is one of a five village case studies produced by partner organizations during field-based training on how to document customary tenure systems, supported by MRLG.

The poster presents an overview of land, livelihoods and customary practices in Nan-Pan Village, Southern Shan State, Myanmar. This poster is one of a five village case studies produced by partner organizations during field-based training on how to document customary tenure systems, supported by MRLG. 

The poster presents an overview of land, livelihoods and customary practices in Daw Taw Ku village, Kayah State, Myanmar. This poster is one of a five village case studies produced by partner organizations during field-based training on how to document customary tenure systems, supported by MRLG.

This scoping study was commissioned to identify issues on land/forest related investment in Tanzania as part of a strategic engagement between Tanzania Natural Resource Forum (TNRF), HAKIARDHI/ LARRRI and the World Wide Fund for Nature – Coastal East Africa Initiative (WWF-CEAI).

Currently, Tanzania faces numerous challenges related to land ownership, especially in rural areas. The challenges include farmers-pastoralists conflicts, tenure disputes, and alienation of peasants. To address the challenges, the current policies and approaches used in the country need to be changed on the grounds that their inherent shortcomings make the policies unable to meet rampant land problems that the country has faced in recent years and continue to experience.