Rich countries have been buying huge plots of land in poor nations in a trend that has been called a new scamble for Africa. Olivier de Schutter, the UN's point man on the issue, tells DW what to do about it.
More land will be set aside for growing food while companies will be encouraged to work with farms overseas to ensure that Singapore has a ready and stable supply of produce.
"Nous n’allons ni acheter, ni louer, ni acquérir des terres africaines pour produire des aliments afin de satisfaire nos propres besoins,’’ l’envoyé extraordinaire du gouvernement chinois, l’ambassadeur Liu Guijin, a réaffirmé, vendredi à Dakar
Debido a la amenaza que representa para el derecho a la alimentación de la población malgache y para el derecho de todos los pueblos a disponer libremente de su tierra y de sus recursos naturales, la población malgache se ha opuesto a este proyecto. El Colectivo de Defensa de la Tierra malgache ha dirigido varias peticiones al gobierno de Madagascar, exigiendo el cese inmediato de todos los proyectos de arrendamiento de la tierra y la revisión de las leyes que permiten a compañías extranjeras adquirir o arrendar tierras.
The World Bank wants to "assert leadership within the donor community to shape the global response" to land grabbing
Philip Kiriro of the East Africa Farmers' Federation says the countries most endangered by landgrabbing in the region are Tanzania and DRC
"We would also like to know why this government has been so aggressive in pushing these lease deals of our farmlands to the rich countries," Philippines Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Ejercito Estrada said.
Topics discussed included a review of recent trends in international investment, the record on FDI in developing country agriculture, evidence on recent investments, the “land grab” and its implications, alternative business models for investments, bridging the investment gap – investment needs and sources of capital, policy implications and the case for an international code of conduct.
Southeast Asian countries took big steps towards formalizing food-for-oil deals with Gulf states at a June meeting between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and the Gulf Cooperation Council.
Because of the political sensitivity of the modern-day land grab, it is often only the country's head of state who knows the details. Der Spiegel investigates.
“It is the height of stupidity for our country to bargain our lands for the sake of other nation’s food security, while being dependent on importation for our very own food security needs,” says Rafael Mariano
"While participating in farmer meetings in Mali recently, I heard about the so-called land grabs first-hand. Libya will use its wealth of petro-dollars to buy control over 250,000 acres of Mali's best rice producing land."
