Contains framework for analysing the gender impacts of foreign investment in agriculture; gender analysis of the certification criteria of voluntary sustainability standards and responsible investment frameworks; do voluntary sustainability standards improve gender equality?; lessons for responsible investment frameworks and recommendations.

This report draws lessons from experience of using legal processes to secure local resource rights within the context of foreign investment projects in Africa. Security of local resource rights is a major challenge in many parts of Africa. The analysis of relevant law reveals that resource rights associated with more powerful interests (foreign investment) tend to enjoy greater legal protection compared to those held by local resource users.

L’agriculture emploie plus de la moitié de la population active béninoise mais reste confrontée à de nombreux défis : faibles productivité et diversification, accès insuffisant à la terre, insuffisante gestion des ressources naturelles, exode rural des jeunes…

Aux côtés du Bénin, l’AFD soutient le développement de ce secteur porteur de l’économie nationale.

Conformément aux Directives volontaires pour une gouvernance responsable des régimes fonciers, les investissements publics et privés dans le monde reconnaissent de plus en plus la gouvernance foncière responsable comme un déterminant du succès et de la durabilité de leurs réalisations. Les gestionnaires d'investissement comprennent que la prévention et l'atténuation des problèmes liés à la tenure sont une étape nécessaire pour atteindre leurs objectifs.

Examines political and social dynamics of foreign agricultural investment in Ethiopia. Concludes that this expansion is part of a government move towards an export-led development strategy, so the micro-benefits come at the cost of increased risks to those living in the vicinity of new investments, particularly politically marginalised pastoralist populations.

Includes an ethnography and the cultural economy of land grabs in Zambia and the role of foreign investments in Zambia. Examines the Chayton investment in Mkushi District and asks who does Chayton feed?

Foreign investment in Ethiopia’s forestry sector is currently limited, but agricultural investments that affect forests, largely through forest clearing, are commonplace. Describes the nature of forest investments and the challenges of implementing them. New tenure arrangements will have significant implications for communities on the forest-farm interface. Looks at Arsi Forest area, Oromia, to investigate potential for conflict over competing claims.