Piloting the ‘Community Land Value Chain’ in Zambezia, Mozambique

ORAM with Terra Firma, provided assistance to 20 communities and 14,000 households living in and around concession areas granted by government to Portucel Mozambique, a subsidiary of the Portugal based Navigator company, for Eucalyptus plantations, intended to supply European pulp and paper markets.

The project adopted a technical approach and set of digital tools known locally as CaVaTeCo   - the Community Land Vale Chain approach, developed by Terra Firma and ORAM. This was used to identify local community boundaries, and the household and family owned land parcels within them, create legally-recognised institutions to represent each community, establish local land registries supported by a centralised digital platform, and issue certificates to all land holders.

The project also undertook land use planning with each community, and promoted women’s participation and a high proportion of land parcels are registered in the name of women. ORAM facilitated recognition by district government of the community and household land rights documented and the community land associations established

The principal outcomes of the project was to secure the land rights of communities in the focal areas of Portucel’s concession in Zambezi province, enabling Portucel to operate on the basis of the free, prior and informed consent of the legitimate land rights

holders, and creating a more level playing field for negotiation between the communities and Portucel on the terms and arrangements for the company to use community land. This can also potentially assist in enabling other companies and government to adopt best practice for responsible in agriculture abdn plantation forestry.

As the project got underway, Portucel agreed to suspend land acquisition and to proceed to negotiate land access to land on the basis of documented community land rights. The company changed its plans from a focus on large scale plantations and adopted an agro-forestry mosaic approach that would include small scale plantation blocks and outgrower arrangements, with support to farmers to produce of income generating crops including alternative tree species.  

The project also undertook training of community land association members in legal aspects and business negotiation with outside investors seeking to access land.

Formal negotiations between the local communities on Portucel based on local community members’ documented land rights and their assessment of what land could be made available to the company did not take place during the life ot the Legend project , as Portucel was not ready to propose new land use agreements and  plans.