Issues relating to land and land reform have been moving up the agenda of rural poverty and food security in recent years with the increasing acceptance that the prerequisites for broad-based and equitable development include the essential need for people to have access to land and other natural resources. Access needs to be on an equitable basis allowing the poor and the disadvantaged, including women, to secure the assets needed for them and their families to generate sustainable livelihoods.

The former socialist countries of Eastern Europe (that is, Europe east of Germany and west of the Urals, but including all of Russia) began a transition to a market economy in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s. This paper looks at one aspect of that transition: the transition from state ownership to private ownership of agricultural land and the accompanying transition to a land market for agricultural land.

This publication contains four in-depth reviews on current and emerging issues in the economic analysis of food, agriculture and rural development, written by well-known scholars in the field. The selection of the issues for in-depth review was the result of a survey conducted among FAO staff involved in policy assistance activities in the main developing regions. Thus, the choice reflects their and, by extension, the policy-makers' perception as to the main research priorities in the economic analysis of agriculture, rural development, poverty and food security.

Cette publication contient quatre études approfondies sur les questions actuelles et nouvelles d’analyse économique de l’alimentation, de l’agriculture et du développement rural, qui sont l’œuvre de grands noms dans ce domaine. La sélection des questions à approfondir a été le résultat d’une enquête conduite auprès du personnel de la FAO s’occupant d’activités d’assistance de politique dans les principales régions en développement.

Comprises introduction; immediate background; Lisa Jones’ summary of the National Land Policy; thoughts on the Policy now; the future – the key question of resources; NGO experiences elsewhere of implementing land policy and law; annexes with extract on land and settlement from the PRSP, and extracts from previous comments on the draft Land Policy. Suggests that, since the Policy is likely soon to be approved, LandNet Rwanda should focus its attention on implementation.

Proceedings of a seminar hosted by SARPN and the Centre for HIV/AIDS Networking, University of Natal, Durban. Contains 1. Introduction; 2. Overview of the current situation; 3. Overview of existing land reform HIV/AIDS policy and integration into Department of Land Affairs programmes; 4. Identification of key issues and challenges; 5. The challenge: developing a way forward.

South Africa is reviewing its plans and progress towards sustainable development ahead of the 2002 World Summit in Johannesburg. Argues that more attention needs to be given to land reform as a key component of sustainable development strategy. Raises a number of questions and concerns that need debate before the Summit and beyond. Focuses particularly on land reform, poverty and livelihoods, and on land reform and the environment.

Land reform is a many-splendoured thing. The term has been used to include not only redistributive reforms of ownership rights but also the establishment of collective or communal forms of farming, state sponsored land colonization schemes in frontier areas, and land tenure reforms, i.e., changes in the contractual arrangements between the landowner and those who cultivate the land. In addition, tax (and credit) measures intended to create incentives for large landowners to sell part of their holding sometimes are described as “market friendly” land reforms.

Delegates at the Harare conference on farm workers in Southern Africa noted with concern the continued marginalisation of farm worker communities and made recommendations on: weak labour legislation, citizenship rights, basic human rights, women farm workers/dwellers, HIV/AIDS, child labour and child abuse, globalization, debt cancellation, xenophobia, farm workers and land reform, the need for a regional summit.

Focuses on tenure reform (as a necessary first step); securing rights for farmworkers and labour tenants; slow progress and key challenges in restitution; redistribution; what is to be done? Offers an overview of the key challenges facing land reform and suggests a number of ways in which the current reform programme can be accelerated to fight poverty and inequality. Argues there is urgent need for a comprehensive, transparent, participatory process and for widespread public debate, especially in the light of events in Zimbabwe.

An historical review of the land reform work of the South African Legal Resources Centre, a non-profit public interest law centre which seeks to use law as an instrument of justice by providing legal services for the vulnerable and marginalised.

Summary: Covers the author’s surprising lack of knowledge of farmworkers; the extensive labour migration in Southern Africa in the 20th century, but the lack of concern about citizenship or nationality then; the historical vulnerability, isolation, and invisibility of farmworkers; the current tightening of borders, increasing xenophobia, greater vulnerability of farmworkers, and failure of government attempts to improve things, that farmworkers have been largely ignored in new land reform programmes, with Zimbabwe illustrating the dangers of this, and the possibility that forced evictions c