Since the 1960s, and particularly in the last decade, Southeast Asia has been attracting significant foreign investments. Myanmar, despite its land titling and registration tangles, is no exception. Investors all across the globe are vying for a piece of the “Golden Land” and the country is responding with equal fervor. The building of a modern industrialized nation through agricultural development is one of the country's economic objectives. Foreign investments are being encouraged, private businesses are being pushed, and attractive tax and duty rebates are being offered.

This guide for legal advisors, community leaders and members explains how communities can prepare for interactions with potential investors, including making decisions about whether or not to negotiate. It can be used to help a community: (a) prepare before an investor arrives and (b) decide whether or not to enter into discussions or negotiations with an investor that has arrived. It should be used before any negotiations start.

Across Africa, Asia and Latin America, investors are increasingly approaching rural communities seeking land for logging, mining, and agribusiness ventures. Even in those situations where the investors have followed FPIC guidelines and undertaken a formal “consultation” with the community, these consultations are generally conducted in a context of significant power and information asymmetries. Part of the power imbalance comes from communities’ lack of information about the value of community lands and natural resources.