By Roy Prosterman
Asia’s Tigers, the collection of booming economies that emerged in the East following World War II, are often hailed as economic miracles. There was, though, no “secret sauce” behind that sustained and broad-based economic growth. Rather, as Myanmar is poised to show, the key ingredient for a Tiger economy can be found right beneath our feet.
Today Land Portal is launching a new qualitative dataset and infographic which shows how national laws measure up against the international standards on expropriation, compensation, and resettlement as established in Section 16 of the UN Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security (VGGTs).
By Joe Studwell & Chris Jochnick
After World War II, land reform programs in Taiwan, South Korea and Japan redistributed vast swaths of land to poor tenant farmers and agricultural laborers. The efforts helped end extreme poverty and hunger — changing the course of these countries’ histories. Land reform was referred to as the “secret sauce” that sparked sustained and broad-based economic growth.
More than 20 years into its democracy, South Africa is still a long way from returning all 24.5 million hectares of land back to the communities who were dispossessed of it during apartheid.
By Mary Jane Ncube, Farai Shone Mutondoro and Manase Chiweshe
In Zimbabwe land is power. And when this power is abused to score political points or amass wealth illegally, the most vulnerable citizens are the hardest hit. In the traditionally patriarchal communities of Zimbabwe, these citizens are most often women.
