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Land Grabbing, Large- and Small-scale Farming: what can evidence and policy from 20th C Africa…
December 16, 2013 / Journal articles Full title: Land Grabbing, Large- and Small-scale Farming: what can evidence and policy from 20th century Africa contribute to the debate? Elena Baglioni and Peter GibbonThird World Quarterly, Vol 34, Issue 9, 2013 Special Issue: Global Land Grabs This article
New paper: Biofuels and land rights in Tanzania
December 16, 2013 / Land A new working paper examines the impacts of large-scale biofuel investments, focusing on a case from Tanzania. Like much of sub-Saharan Africa, Tanzania has experienced a surge in land-based investment during the past decade. The paper, by Emmanuel Sulle and
Biofuels Investment and Community Land Tenure in Tanzania
December 16, 2013 / Working Papers Future Agricultures Working Paper 73 Emmanuel Sulle and Fred Nelson December 2013 Like much of sub-Saharan Africa, Tanzania has experienced a surge in land-based investment during the past decade. While expanding private investment in agriculture is a core ambition of
To achieve food security, we need to talk about politics and power in the food system
December 11, 2013 / FAC blog I’ve previously written about the focus on agriculture to meet food and nutrition security and the same argument holds for the agenda at the 2013 AFC conference. However, if we take it as given that there was very little discussion
Call for Participation: Conference on Agricultural Investment, Gender and Land in Africa
December 9, 2013 / News Call for Participation: Multi-stakeholder Conference on Agricultural Investment, Gender and Land in Africa – Towards inclusive, equitable and socially responsible investment South Africa, March 2014
Conference: Agricultural Investment, Gender & Land in Africa
December 9, 2013 / Land Conference on Agricultural Investment, Gender and Land in Africa - Towards inclusive, equitable and socially responsible investment Venue: Protea Hotel, Stellenbosch (Cape Town), South AfricaDate: 5 Mar 2014 to 7 Mar 2014 The conference includes contributions from academia, government, private
Intégrer les différences sociales, le genre et l’analyse sociale dans le développement agricole
December 6, 2013 / Briefings politiques / Policy briefs in French Point info 39 par Christine Okali Une conception très répandue veut que les processus actuels de changement social, économique, politique et environnemental en Afrique subsaharienne augmentent les inégalités sociales. Cette idée reflète l’incapacité apparente de certains groupes de s’adapter aux
L’innovation en marche: des pasteurs assurent leurs moyens de subsistance dans la Corne de l’Afrique
December 6, 2013 / Briefings politiques / Policy briefs in French Point info 38 par Abdirizak Nunow, Abdullahi Abdi Hussein, Jeremy Lind, Bokutache Dida et Abdullahi Hussein Mahmoud Les régions pastorales de la Corne de l’Afrique traversent des changements rapides. L’ouverture des marchés aide à améliorer les moyens de subsistance et
5 December: China and Brazil in African agriculture – news roundup
December 5, 2013 / FAC blog Japanese civil society call for immediate suspension and review of ProSavana Japanese civil society organisations have written a joint statement calling for the immediate suspension and review of the ProSavana project in Mozambique. “This statement is based on the gravity
New projects for 2013-14: grants awarded
December 4, 2013 / Early Career Fellowship Programme Future Agricultures is supporting several new research projects in 2013-2014, building on the evidence gathered through our research themes. A summary of the small grants awarded in October 2013 is below. To get news of the publications and other outputs
BICAS founding document
December 2, 2013 / News Founding document of the BRICS Initiative for Critical Agrarian Studies.
Call for Proposals: BRICS Initiative for Critical Agrarian Studies
December 2, 2013 / Land 2 December 2013: The BRICS Initiative for Critical Agrarian Studies (BICAS) invites applications for small grants for research papers on the themes outlined below, and welcomes applications from PhD students or recent PhDs. The deadline for proposals is 1 February
BRICS Initiative for Critical Agrarian Studies launched
December 2, 2013 / Land The BRICS Initiative for Critical Agrarian Studies (BICAS) is a new collective of largely BRICS-based or connected academic researchers concerned with understanding the BRICS countries and their implications for global agrarian transformations. For its launch, BICAS has released its first
New book: Agricultural input subsidies and Malawi
November 27, 2013 / Growth and Social Protection Agricultural input subsidies have been adopted on a large scale across different African countries in the last few years. A new book, Agricultural Input Subsidies: the Recent Malawi Experience, by Ephraim Chirwa and Andrew Dorward, examines the benefits and risks
26 November: China and Brazil in African Agriculture – news roundup
November 26, 2013 / FAC blog China grants new loan for Zimbabwean power station China’s EXIM Bank has given Zimbabwe $319 million to fund the expansion of Kariba hydropower station from 150MW to 1050MW. This infrastructural support is predicted to have a positive impact on the
Debating Zimbabwe’s Land Reform: new book
November 26, 2013 / Land Zimbabwe’s land reform has been intensely controversial. Yet debate has been plagued by bias and misinformation. A new book by Ian Scoones, Debating Zimbabwe’s Land Reform, aims to offer a more considered discussion, rooted in field-based, empirical research carried out
South-South Co-operation debate in Brasilia, 26 November 2013
November 25, 2013 / FAC blog Lídia Cabral, researcher on our project about China and Brazil in African Agriculture will be involved in a debate on South-South Co-operation on 26 November. The debate takes place from 9am to 12pm in Brasilia and is organised by Embrapa.
Transparency and governance in the land sector: two sides of the same coin?
November 22, 2013 / FAC blog Transparency served as an immediate umbrella to bring together different initiatives in a very short time in the run-up to the G8 summit 2013 but seems to have been a launch pad rather than the end point. Similarly, the Open
Global climate politics meets national agricultural policy
November 20, 2013 / Climate Change Agriculture has not always had an easy ride in international climate negotiations. But even when farming and food are considered, there is sometimes conflict between global politics and local policy processes. On the blog, Joanes Atela considers how global climate
Programme – Pan African Parliament seminar, Malabo, November 2013
November 20, 2013 / News Programme of the Parliamentary seminar “Making Agricultural Investment Work for Africa: A Parliamentarian’s response to the land rush”, held in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, on 8 – 9 November 2013.
Making Agricultural Investment Work for Africa: parliamentarians from Central Africa respond to the ‘land rush’
November 20, 2013 / FAC blog The meeting in Malabo was the third in a series of regional meetings of parliamentarians (previous meetings were held in Cotonou last October, and Kigali in April). The next regional meeting is planned for Johannesburg in 2014. The impetus behind
Final Declaration – Malabo, November 2013
November 20, 2013 / News Final declaration by parliamentarians from the Pan-African Parliament and the Parliament of the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa (CEMAC), made at the end of the Parliamentary seminar “Making Agricultural Investment Work for Africa: A Parliamentarian’s response to the
Agricultural Input Subsidies: The Recent Malawi Experience
November 20, 2013 / Books by Ephraim Chirwa and Andrew DorwardOxford University PressSeptember 2013 This book is available as an Open Access pdf. Agricultural input subsidies have been adopted on a large scale across different African countries in the last few years. However global experience
African agriculture is under pressure from the global politics of climate change
November 18, 2013 / FAC blog The politics of climate change and agriculture Considerable politics revolves around negotiating Parties, organizations’ and sectoral interests as played out in past debates under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and national debates. These debates have, however,
18 November: China and Brazil in African agriculture – news roundup
November 18, 2013 / FAC blog Ghana’s president looks forward to Brazil loan Brazil’s loan of $1 billion to Ghana is set to arrive soon, according to President John Dramani Mahama. The loan will be used for a number of projects, including agriculture, energy and infrastructure.
Retail revolutions: the rise and rise of butcheries and informal food selling in Zimbabwe
November 15, 2013 / FAC blog Certainly the growth of butcheries has continued, despite challenges. In a survey in 2006-07 we counted 31 butcheries in Masvingo town (20 in Mucheke township alone) and 9 in Ngundu. All businesses suffered badly at the peak of the economic
Three new ideas to help agriculture take centre stage in climate change negotiations
November 15, 2013 / FAC blog Climate change, above all increased climate variability, threatens the economies of the poorest countries and the livelihoods (and indeed the lives themselves) of the poorest people. Agriculture is the mainstay of most of the world’s poorest, and is both a
Making land deals more transparent
November 14, 2013 / Land A new report suggests how land deals could be made more transparent, drawing on lessons from other sectors. In the report, The Possible Shape of a Land Transparency Initiative, Anna Locke (ODI, Future Agricultures land theme) and Giles Henley (ODI)
Climate compatible development: the politics of ‘triple wins’ and trade-offs
November 13, 2013 / FAC blog Can adaptation, mitigation and development work together? The idea that climate funding should support multiple climate and development goals has taken root over the last few years. The increasing popularity of terms such as ‘climate compatible development’, ‘climate smart agriculture’,
How can Africa adapt to climate change?
November 10, 2013 / Climate Change As the world meets to discuss adaptation climate change at the COP19 conference, Future Agricultures research looks at how African agricultural policy is responding in different ways to this major challenge. Our work looks at how climate policy discussions are
Beef value chains in Masvingo Province, Zimbabwe
November 6, 2013 / FAC blog Case 1: Mr OM has an A2 farm north of Masvingo of around 250 ha. He runs around 60 cattle there, which are regularly slaughtered. He also milks the cows and sells soured milk locally, and even has plans for
11 November, Brussels: Leaping and Learning report launch
November 4, 2013 / Pathways to Commercialisation An event on 11 November 2013 in Brussels will launch two new reports which provide practical, real-life examples of linking smallholder farmers in Africa to markets, as well as a robust academic review of the challenges faced, lessons learned and
Register: Food sovereignty, ISS, January 2014
November 1, 2013 / Land The International Institute of Social Studies (ISS) is organising a colloquium on food sovereignty on 24 January 2014 in The Hague. Places are limited, so early registration is advised. Full details: Food Sovereignty: A Critical Dialogue - 24 January 2014
30 October: China and Brazil in African agriculture – news roundup
October 30, 2013 / FAC blog MST Speaks out against ProSavana in Maputo MST spokesman, Augusto Juncal, was invited to speak as guest of honour at the Second International Small-scale Farmers Conference on Land in Maputo last week. He warned people “open your eyes, you’ll lose
Governing Global Land Deals: The Role of the State in the Rush for Land
October 25, 2013 / Books This collection of essays on Governing Global Land Deals provides new empirical and theoretical analyses of the relationships between global land grabs and processes of government and governance. The book reframes debates on global land grabs by focusing on the relationship between
New book: land deals and the state
October 25, 2013 / Land A new book examines the state's role in land deals through theoretical insights and empirical studies from around the globe. Governing Global Land Deals: The Role of the State in the Rush for Land analyses the relationships between global land
Press release: African governments colluding with land-grabbers at the expense of the poor
October 25, 2013 / News Press release from the KwaZulu Natal Christian Council following a meeting of church leaders and activists from six SADC countries in Durban, South Africa, October 2013.
Influencing CAADP on food and nutrition security
October 23, 2013 / FAC blog FOODSECURE is an EU-based research program to explore the future of global food and nutrition security (FNS). It aims to have an impact by strengthening the knowledge base to support EU policy makers and other stakeholders in the design of
“Land belongs to God”: stories from Southern Africa
October 23, 2013 / FAC blog The purpose of the Summit, held in Durban on 16-18 October, was to develop an inter-denominational common understanding of the challenges of land grabbing and landlessness, while developing a joint regional platform among churches to work with civil society to
22 October: China and Brazil in African agriculture – news roundup
October 22, 2013 / FAC blog China and India’s rising food prices affect world markets Food has become the main driver of inflation in both countries, with inflation expected to increase further this year in China. Data drawn from China’s CPI index showed that the pickup
A new way of bringing ‘farms’ and ‘systems’ together
October 21, 2013 / FAC blog The words ‘farm’ (or ‘farming’) and ‘system’ are used in many combinations, but three of the most common are: a ‘farm system’: referring to the conceptualisation of an individual farm as a system, a set of inter-related, interacting components or
Women and climate change: another special relationship?
October 21, 2013 / FAC blog It is commonly argued that women undertake the bulk of the work in agriculture, fisheries and livestock keeping, and as a consequence are particularly knowledgeable about the natural resource base. This is the basis of the idea that African rural
Do property rights protect the poor?
October 21, 2013 / FAC blog These messages are punchy and well articulated. Reading it from the perspective of the China and Brazil in African Agriculture research project I’m currently working on, it was also interesting to get a sense of where most of these land
18 October: China and Brazil in African agriculture – news roundup
October 18, 2013 / FAC blog Japanese NGOs call for review of ProSavana Five Japanese NGOs have called for a suspension of ProSavana and review of the project during a press conference in Tokyo. Their appeal was made following a field visit to Mozambique and involved
Can China and Brazil help Africa feed itself?
October 16, 2013 / Policy Briefs CAADP Policy Brief 12 The questions of how Africa can feed itself, and how the agricultural sector can be a more effective engine for growth and development, have long been targets of national governments. Western donors have increased assistance following
Supporting small farmers to commercialise
October 16, 2013 / Policy Briefs CAADP Policy Brief 11 Accelerating growth in the agricultural sector by raising the capacities of private entrepreneurs – smallholder and commercial farmers – to meet the increasingly complex requirements of domestic, regional and international markets, is the central aim of
Agricultural commercialisation: who wins and who loses?
October 16, 2013 / FAC blog Models of commercialisation The LACA project explores the implications of three models of commercialisation in three case study sites in each country. The first year of the project has involved qualitative research in all 9 study sites. While these models
Old powers and new powers: agriculture and investment in Africa
October 14, 2013 / FAC blog Our panel was on food and agriculture, and included the inevitable discussion about ‘land grabs’, large and small farm models, and how investment in Africa could be increased, but also guided and regulated. The panel included two investors in farm