by GENEVIEVE LAVOIE-MATHIEU
The controversy surrounding land grabbing in Africa has sparked debates worldwide, but according to Dr. Lorenzo Cotula, who is a researcher at the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) in London and an expert on the topic, it is now time to adopt a new approach.
A Polarized Debate
Numerous human rights defense organization, such as Oxfam have denounced the devastating impact of the worldwide wave of large scale land acquisitions. According to the international organization, populations are invariably losing in front of local elites and national or foreign investors, because they lack the necessary power to assert their rights and promote their interests. But, according to Cotula, it doesn’t have to be that way.
Some, like the World Bank, “emphasize the need for investment in agriculture to feed the world’s growing population. They point to the capital, know-how, infrastructure and market links that corporations can contribute” according to Cotula. For others, like Oxfam and FIAN International, large-scale land investments represent a risk for populations as the phenomenon, they argue, is driven by speculation and not agricultural production, which poses a threat to local food security.
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(Thanks to Feroz Mehdi)