Across rural Africa, land legislation struggles to be properly implemented, and most resource users gain access to land on the basis of local land tenure systems.

Los programas de atención a la reducción de emisiones provenientes de la deforestación o degradación de los ecosistemas, como es el caso de REDD+ y otros programas de incentivos forestales como son los pagos por servicios ambientales (PSA), podrían constituir una oportunidad para el fortalecimiento de los procesos de conservación, aprovechamiento sustentable y reducción de la pobreza en la región mesoamericana, y en particular en los territorios y comunidades indígenas.

o presente trabalho e uma compilação de vàrios artigos que sintetizam os resultados de pesquisas de campo sobre acesso e segurança de posse de terra efectuados nos liltimos cinco anos em Moçambique. Trata-se de pesquisas realizadas pelo projecto sobre Política Fundiária -Land Tenure Center da Universidade de Wisconsin, Estados Unidos da América, em colaboração com o Ministério da Agricultura e o NET-Núcleo de Estudos da Terra, da Universidade Eduardo Mondlane.

The history of modern land management and administration in Cambodia begins with French initiatives in the late 19th century. The first Civil Code was adopted in 1920 and it established a system of French land law that recognized private property rights. Some traditional Cambodian rights, in particular that of creating a land right simply by occupation and possession, were included in the Civil Code. During the 1960s there was an adequate system of land management, including confirmation of private property rights with land records including cadastral maps and land titles.

The land challenge is central to the broader youth dynamics of migration, employment, livelihoods and belonging. The more than 1.8 billion youth living worldwide represent not only a land challenge, but an untapped potential in moving the tenure security agenda forward. Recognizing this, the Global Land Tool Network has partnered with UN-Habitat to develop youth responsive land tools through the Youth-led Action Research on Land program. Five action research projects will be undertaken by youth organizations in Brazil, Kenya, Nepal, Yemen and Zimbabwe.

In Ghana 70 per cent of the population are smallholder farmers who depend on the land for their basic needs. Growing competition for this resource is having significant impacts on rural livelihoods and governance as land changes hands. This study highlights the key drivers of pressure on rural land and their communities, such as population growth, urbanisation and acquisition of land by new actors, including government and business.

The acquisition of land by foreigners in developing countries has emerged as a key mechanism for foreign direct investment (FDI). FDI is defined by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) as the category of international investment that reflects the objective of a resident entity in one economy to obtain a lasting interest in an enterprise resident in another economy.

Land acquisitions, either driven by foreign investments or domestic investment needs have continued to polarize opinions. When this research was proposed, it was premised on arguments by scholars Ruth Meinzen-Dick and Helen Markelova, who had analysed agricultural land deals, and argued that there were potentially two schools of thought about foreign acquisitions over agricultural land.

Kenya is currently implementing a number of large scale infrastructure and development projects aimed at trans forming the country into a newly industrializing, middle-income country. For this, the government has had to compulsorily acquire large tracts of land upon which the infrastructure is set.

Women face many problems with regard to land inheritance and land rights in Kenya. Individual and community land ownership do not favour women. The reason for this is that ownership of land is patrilineal, which means that fathers share land amongst sons, while excluding daughters. This practice is traditionally widespread and partly accepted although it goes against the interest of women and is prohibited by the constitution.

While women’s rights to land and property are protected under the Kenyan Constitution of 2010 and in various national statutes, in practice, women remain disadvantaged and discriminated. The main source of restriction is customary laws and practices, which continue to prohibit women from owning or inheriting land and other forms of property.