Presents the experience of international development, wildlife and human rights practitioners, shared at a symposium on land grabbing and conservation in March. Land can be ‘grabbed’ for ‘green’ purposes, triggering conflicts that undermine potential synergies. Expanded state protected areas, land for carbon offset markets and REDD, and for private conservation projects all potentially conflict with community rights. Such conflict is counterproductive because secure customary and communal land tenure helps enable sustainable natural resource management by local communities.

Includes rising land acquisition in developing countries; threats and opportunities from large-scale land acquisitions; making a virtue of necessity: toward win-win policies; 5 tables of media reports on overseas land investments to secure food supplies, 2006-09.

Discusses agricultural investments in Mali. Analyses national trends in investment flows and patterns; assesses the adequacy of the legal and institutional framework regulating land and investment; and examines two examples of more inclusive investments. Findings provide ground for concern as to the preparedness of national frameworks to ensure that investment pursues sustainable development goals. Also provide insights on the potential and challenges of making more inclusive investment models work in practice.

Despite growing research on land deals in Ethiopia, there is still uncertainty on the real scale and features of the phenomenon, and some misperceptions continue to shape public debates. Report discusses the findings of a systematic inventory of land deals for agricultural investment in Ethiopia. It describes the scale, geography, drivers and key features of large-scale deals. It also discusses findings relating to the early outcomes of the deals.

As competition for land and water resources intensifies, there is a growing need to re-evaluate the comparative social and environmental advantages of extensive pastoral production systems. 9 studies of hard-to-reach pastoral areas in Ethiopia and Kenya reaffirm that the true value of pastoral systems is largely overlooked. Camel milk, goat meat, draught power and other goods and services provide subsistence products and household income; they also create employment, income opportunities and access to credit along their ‘value chains’.

Under Ugandan law a person whose land is identified for a public purpose must be compensated fairly, promptly, and prior to the acquisition of the property. But often laws and best practices remain on paper only. Many individual landowners are often ignorant about their basic rights, and lack the capacity and courage to speak out against injustice meted on them by development projects. The decision by the Ugandan government to construct an oil refinery meant that over 1,200 households were to be displaced.

Despite progressive provisions on gender equality in Tanzania’s land laws, women have little representation in land allocation decisions. Mainstreaming gender in local regulations can help address this problem. The Tanzania Women Lawyers Association, in partnership with the World Resources Institute and Lawyers’ Environmental Action Team, developed model by-laws to improve women’s participation in local-level decision-making on village land management. This took place in Kidugalo and Vilabwa villages in Kisarawe district.

Focus on a new book Zimbabwe’s Land Reform: Myths and Realities by Ian Scoones, Nelson Marongwe, Blasio Mavedzenge, Felix Murimbarimba, Jacob Mahenehene and Chrispen Sukume. It asks what has happened in the ten years since large areas of Zimbabwe’s commercial farm land were invaded by land-hungry villagers, and challenges the view that land reform was an unmitigated disaster. Includes interviews with Ian Scoones, a series of 6 articles in The Zimbabwean, and links to related publications.

Highlights the key drivers of pressure in Ghana on rural land and their communities, such as population growth, urbanisation and acquisition of land by new actors, including government and business. Draws on case study evidence from two communities: the Ahanta West District near Sekondi-Takoradi in the south, and the Savelugu-Nanton Municipal Authority around Tamale in the north.

In much of sub-Saharan Africa, women have little say in decisions over land. Unless proactive steps are taken to enable women to have a stronger voice, large-scale agribusiness projects will leave them even more marginalised. Though there has been little research in this area, an emerging body of thinking and practice provides clear pointers as to how governments, NGOs and investors might mitigate such risks in future, particularly by explicitly addressing gender issues head-on from the very outset.

In sub-Saharan Africa the pace and scale at which land is changing hands are increasing fast. Summarises findings from a research project – including case studies in Ghana, Senegal, Mozambique, and Uganda – to improve understanding of these changes by addressing 3 main questions: How is land access changing in rural Africa, and what are the major drivers of change? How are these changes affecting rural livelihoods? What are the implications of these changes for development policy and practice?

In recent years, Cameroon has been approached by growing numbers of local and international investors wanting to acquire arable land for large-scale agro-industrial operations. This study takes a closer look at large-scale land acquisitions since 2005. Examining the legal framework and the practical implications of these land acquisitions, it shows that there is a risk that they will affect the long-term capacity of communities to preserve their traditional way of living.