This draft model lease contract considers international best practices and recommendations, regarding the design of contract for farmland investments. In particular, the IISD Guide to Negotiating Investment Contract for Farmland and Water, were used as a reference while designing this current draft. Experience gained by BVVG Agriforest Privatization Agency regarding lease contact design is reflected in the draft model contact. 

Send a Cow (SAC) is a nongovernmental organization (NGO) that has been working in Kenya since 1996. It focuses on groups of smallholder farmers, providing them with training in sustainable agriculture and improved animal management. SAC is mostly active in western Kenya, one of the country's most populated and poorest region. The population density for this region ranges from 337 to 1,300 inhabitants per km² with an average density of 590 people per km2 (Kenya Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, 2001; KNBS, 2010).

In agriculture, surveying is required to prepare topographical maps that indicate variations in the level of the land's surface. Topographical maps are necessary as a base for the preparation of research station maps which include layout of field, buildings, roads, and soil conservation measures.

Sampling and analysis or visual examination of soil to assess its status and use potential is widely practiced from plot to national scales. However, the choice of relevant soil attributes and interpretation of measurements are not straightforward, because of the complexity and site-specificity of soils, legacy effects of previous land use, and trade-offs between ecosystem services. Here we review soil quality and related concepts, in terms of definition, assessment approaches, and indicator selection and interpretation.

The International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), in collaboration with our national research partners, has been working in Africa for the last 30 years. Our cutting-edge science helps policy makers, private sector, scientists, civil society, and farmers respond to the most pressing challenges of our time.

A water and soil quality baseline study was carried out across the ~ 4500 km2 Vientiane Plain in Lao PDR. Eight water quality and nine soil parameters were analysed using field kits at 95 sites in March 2015. Elevated electrical conductivity and chloride were apparent at two sites due to geogenic leaching from the marine rock-salt present in some areas. Groundwater was acidic in most locations. Nitrate and faecal contamination were also observed from nitrogenous fertilizers (diffuse) and from leaky sewage pits (localised) respectively.

Bush encroachment is a matter of growing concern in the semi-arid regions of Namibia. Locally adapted, long-term solutions for land restoration must be elaborated. It is crucial that local scientists are empowered to map and monitor the degradation process themselves, our authors maintain.

.