Land of Plenty, Land of Misery: Synergetic Resource Grabbing in Mozambique

textabstractGlobal climate change policy enforcement has become the new driving force of resource
grabbing in the context of the “scramble of resources” in Africa. Nevertheless, the environmental crisis
should not be seen as an isolated phenomenon amid contemporary capitalism. On the contrary, a very
distinct feature of the current wave of land grabs is the convergence of multiple crises, including food,
energy/fuel, environmental, and financial. The Southern Mozambique District, Massingir, is an area
with high potential regarding water sources and biodiversity. It recently became a host of a biofuel
project, and also a huge block of land is being transformed into a conservation/tourism area; answering
to many issues within capitalism’s crisis, this area is an evidence of how synergetic resource grabbing
can arise as a response to the convergence of multiple crises. Therefore, by analyzing the emerging
politics of natural resources in Massingir District and the dynamics regarding the land-use change,
changes in property relations, it is possible to understand how rural livelihoods are shaped. Risks
related to food security and sovereignty, loss of control and access to resources, consistent narrowing
down of the set of livelihood strategies, and inter-community conflicts over scarce resources are the
main implications of such emerging climate-smart land politics.