Land grabbing in Africa continues to harm the poor

/land_grabbing_in_africa_contin_1.html

  • Land grabbing in Africa continues to harm the poor | Nature News Blog
    http://blogs.nature.com/news/2011/12/land_grabbing_in_africa_contin_1.html

    More than 200 million hectares of land in poor nations was sold by governments in land-grabbing deals with industry and investors between 2000 and 2010, a new study reports.

    This high global demand for land is likely to continue for the long term, concludes the study by the International Land Coalition, an alliance of civil society and intergovernmental organisations, published today. (See Nature’s previous coverage of land grabs here.)

    While the most publicised deals have focused on international transactions for food and biofuel production, the study - the most comprehensive to date – says rich national investors play a much larger role in land acquisitions than previous recognised.

    Some 78% of land deals are for agricultural production, of which three quarters are for biofuels. But other significant activities include mining, tourisms and forest conversions, which make up the remaining 22%, finds the Global Commercial Pressures on Land Research Project study.

    #terres #agriculture #biocarburants