encounter aefjnrome, november 2010 land grab in africa jose osaba consultant, world rural forum

Encounter AEFJN Rome, November 2010

LAND GRAB IN AFRICA

Jose OsabaConsultant, World Rural Forum

LAND GRAB IN AFRICA

• More than 100 years ago after Europe’s powers carved up the continent, Africa is again being stripped of its natural resources – this time the target is fruit, vegetable and water. An Observer investigation reveals how rich countries faced by a global food shortage farm huge land masses to guarantee supplies for their citizens – while Africans go hungry.



INTRODUCTION

Sudden & fast development has taken us by surprise.The amount of available land is 6 million Ha per year until 2030. This amounts to over 100 million Ha. What are the consequences and what can we do?

If not stopped or properly regulated, the Land grab can be a serious threat to food security and sovereignty in Africa and all over the world.


HISTORY: COLONIAL PERIODS, PLANTATIONS

*Migration of peoples, armed invasions, and other forms of occupation of territories by a dominant group or invaders usually brought a change in land ownership mainly for agricultural and cattle-rearing purposes.

*In the case of Africa, the colonial era started in the 15th century and reached its highest level after the Berlin conference of 1885- when the European powers carved up the continent. We could call that situation a massive land grab, where the peoples of Africa were deprived of their own land, their own forests and mines, their own culture and destiny. *During that long period vast plantations like tea, coffee, cotton, cacao, spices, peanuts, tobacco, timber and mining activities, were developed to serve colonial interests.

Traditional African systems of food production were disrupted or marginalized. After independence, African agriculture has not received real attention from national governments.


CONCEPT OF LAND GRABBING, LAND ACQUISITION

Land grabbing is the purchase or lease of vast areas of rural and agricultural land by foreign governments or multinational corporations with the aim of producing food, animal feed, bio-fuel, etc. to be exported to their own countries in exchange for capital or the construction of certain infrastructures. We should also mention the acquisition of huge portions of land by national investors.

ETHIOPIA

• Israel, India, China, UAE, Italy, UK Turkey, Netherlands. Saudi Arabia: In Awassa, is setting up Ethiopia’s largest greenhouse; a plastic & steel structure stretching 20Ha. The manager shows us millions of tomatoes, peppers, vegetables grown ii 500m rows in computer controlled conditions. Dutch technology minimises water use from two bore holes and 1,000 women pick and pack 50 tonnes of food a day. Within 24 hrs they are driven 200 miles to Addis Ababa and flown 1,000 miles to the stores and restaurants of Dubai, Jeddah and in the Middle East.


ETHIOPIA• Ethiopia is one of the hungriest countries in

the world with 13M people needing food aid – yet the government offers at least 3M ha of its most fertile land to rich countries and some of the world’s most wealthy individuals to export food for their own populations.

• The land is leased for 99 years to a SA Sheikh al-Amoudi, a billionnaire –one of the 50 richest men in the world. His Saudi Star company is to spend $2B to buy and develop 500,000 ha to grow wheat, rice, vegetables and flowers for Saudi markets and hire 10,000 people. J.VIDAL


In DRCongo: China has a contract to grow 2.8 ha of palm oil biofuels.

• Indian companies, with gov. loans bought or leased hundreds of thousands of ha in Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Senegal & Mozambique where they grow rice, sugar canem,maize and lentils for their domestic market.

• New York firm Jarch Capital run by Philip Heilberg has leased 800,000ha in Sudan.

• Foreign countries involved in Mozambique: SA, UK, Italy, Sweden, Switzerland and Canada.

• In the Namibian, Jan 11,2011: Okongo People protest land sale of N$1.5M to Michael Chan,a Chinese businessman. Namrights asked the Ministry to investigate.


NAMIBIA LAND GRAB

• A CHINESE MINERAL EXPLORATION AND DEVELOPMENT COMPANY HAS SEALED A LEASE WORTH N50MILLION TO JOINTLY DEVELOP WEATHERLY BERG AUKAS LEAD AND ZINC MINE NEAR GROOTFONTEIN. New Era-14/01/2011.



LAND GRAB DIRECTLY AFFECTS FOOD SECURITY

FOOD SECURITY:

Food security is a state where there is universal access to food that is healthful, nutritious, safe, and culturally acceptable. In addition, in a food-secure community, the growing, processing and distribution of food is regionally based, socially just, and environmentally sustainable.Food security exists when all people, at all times, have physical, social and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food which meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life. Household food security is the application of this concept to the family level, with individuals within households as the focus of concern.


FOOD SOVEREIGNTY

Food sovereignty: Every nation has the right to define its own agricultural policy aimed at producing the food needed by its people. It rejects agricultural biotechnology and industrial agriculture in favour of localised food production and the protection of rural livelihoods across all nation-states. Demands the removal of agriculture from the international trade system.

LAND GRAB DIRECTLY AFFECTS FOOD SOVEREIGNTY

Food sovereignty is the right of peoples to healthy and culturally appropriate food produced through ecologically sound and sustainable methods and their right to define their own food and agriculture systems. It puts the aspirations and needs of those who produce, distribute and consume food at the heart of food systems and policies rather than the demands of markets and corporations (International Planning Committee for Food Sovereignty-CIP).


FOOD PRICE CRISIS, SCARCITY OF FOOD LAND TO GROW BIOFUEL CROPS A HEALTHY RETURN ON CAPITAL+25%/yr

DECLINING WATER SUPPLY

POPULATION GROWTH

IN AFRICA, LAND AND LABOR IS CHEAP

The Land Rush is being accelerated by


• During 2007-2008 sharp oil price rises and growing water shortages provoked a serious world-wide food crisis like wheat, rice, corn, and other cereals which caused riots in many countries.

• (In The Namibian, Jan 6,2011: “Global food

prices rose in Dec. with the Food Price Index at record high. Sugar increased 25pts in Nov., wheat, rice and maize rose 15pts and prices could rise further due to dry conditions, winterkill or if current weather patterns persist.

Why now? What happened that could explain the sudden explosion of land grab?

Assure Food Supply

• In many food-importing countries, (Saudi Arabia, UK, Qatar, South Africa, China, South Korea, Japan, USA etc.) governments and national companies decided to assure their food supply by producing food, animal feed, bio-fuel in other countries instead of importing them at a higher cost.

• International agribusinesses, investment banks, foundations, individuals....are attracted by some of the worlds cheapest land. If it can’t be bought, it is leased by paying $1 per year per hectare.



A NEW NEO-COLONIALISM?

Arica is again being stripped of its natural resources. On top of minerals and oil, the target is now land and water to grow fruit, vegetables and flowers.

Pretending to help rural areas of developing countries, government and investors propagate the myth that they develop waste land or land that is not utilized. While being faced by a global food shortage, rich countries lease and buy huge farm lands to guarantee supplies for their citizens – while Africans go hungry.


We should not forget that national governments hold the real power, almost the unique power.

There are already several cases: Sudan, Mozambique, Liberia, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Zambia, DRC, Kenya, Senegal, Mali, Ghana....

- Sudan: 2004-2008, 4 million Ha.

- Mozambique: 2004-2009, 2,7 million Ha.

- Liberia: 2004-2008, 1,6 million Ha

- Ethiopia 2004-2008, 3 million Ha.

-DR Congo with China: 2.8M Ha. of pam oil for biofuels

A NEW NEO-COLONIALISM?


THE ABSENT PARTNERS:

WHAT ABOUT THE FARMERS, FISHERMEN, SHEPHERDS AND, ULTIMATELY, THE WHOLE

CIVIL SOCIETY?

In agreements about land lease/acquisition, deals are done secretly with no consultation of indigenous populations and no compensation. Locals can’t believe the number of people coming in with lots of tractors invading their lands. There is little mention of the thousands of people affected by the land purchase.


CONSEQUENCES• Depriving national farmers of their own agricultural

land.• Diverting food or bio-fuel production to foreign

countries.• Farmers becoming labourers, tenants, urban poor, or

migrants.• Weakening of food security and food sovereignty.• Large-scale, intensive farming needs chemicals,

pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers, water intensive water use, large-scale transport, storage & distribution – turns land into monoculture plantations.

• Brings badly needed technical know-how? • A tool for development? Access to markets? Jobs?• Better crop yields? More public revenues?• Building infrastructures?


THE UN SYSTEM: GOOD PRINCIPLES, UN is at the service of the Gov. & has no

power Guidelines from the World Bank, in association with FAO, IFAD,

UNCTAD:Principle 1: Existing rights to land and natural resources are recognized and respected. TOTALLY ABSENT, WITH LITTLE IMPLEMENTATION.

Principle 2: Investments do not jeopardize food security, it strengthens it. THE FACTS GO IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION.

- Principle 3: Processes for accessing land and other resources, and associated investments, are transparent, monitored, and ensure accountability by all stakeholders, within a proper business, legal, and regulatory environment. THERE IS NO SUCH TRANSPARENCY OR ACCOUNTABILITY.


THE UN SYSTEM: GOOD PRINCIPLES, TOTALLY SEPARATED FROM REALITY

Guidelines from the World Bank, in association with FAO, IFAD, UNCTAD:

Principle 4: All those materially affected are consulted, and agreements from consultations are recorded and enforced. THE RULE IS THAT FARMERS, SHEPHERDS, ETC ARE IGNORED.

Principle 5: Investors ensure that projects respect the rule of law, reflect industry’s best practice, are viable economically, and result in durable shared value. UNDER PRESENT CIRCUMSTANCES, THIS IS PURE FORMALITY.

Principle 6: Investments generate desirable social and distributional impacts and do not increase vulnerability.THERE IS NO SUCH MORAL COMPONENT IN TRADE PRACTICESTHEY GENERATE DEPRIVATION AND INSECURITY


THE UN SYSTEM: GOOD PRINCIPLES, TOTALLY SEPARATED FROM REALITY

Guidelines from the World Bank, in association with FAO, IFAD, UNCTAD:

- Principle 7: Environmental impacts due to a project are quantified, and measures are taken to encourage sustainable resource use while minimizing the risk/magnitude of negative impacts and mitigating them. PURE LITERATURE

Opens the door to corruption: rich and powerful capture the benefits of land deals without sharing them.

Only a tiny percentage of local farmers have a deed to their land even if they lived off the land for generations.

Will undermine people’s access to land and water.

GOVERNMENTS WOULD NEED TECHNICAL EXPERTISE AND SCRUTINIZE INVESTMENT PROPOSALS to GET GOOD CONTRACTS


AND NOW?

WHAT CAN PEOPLE DO?at the

LOCAL, NATIONAL , INTERNATIONAL LEVEL,

SITUATIONS ARE VERY DIFFERENT


CASE OF MADAGASCAR AND DAEWOO LOGISTICS: A failed attempt

Daewoo to cultivate Madagascar land for freeFinancial Times. 19-Nov-2008

By Song Jung-a and Christian Oliver in Seoul, and Tom Burgis in Johannesburg

Daewoo Logistics of South Korea said it expected to pay nothing to farm maize and palm oil in an area of Madagascar half the size of Belgium, increasing concerns about the largest farmland investment of this kind.


CASE OF MADAGASCAR AND DAEWOO LOGISTICS: Promises made

The Indian Ocean island will simply gain employment opportunities from Daewoo's 99-year lease of 1.3m hectares, officials at the company said. They emphasised that the aim of the investment was to boost Seoul's food security.

"We want to plant corn there to ensure our food security. Food can be a weapon in this world," said Hong Jong-wan, a manager at Daewoo. "We can either export the harvests to other countries or ship them back to Korea in case of a food crisis.“

Daewoo had agreed with Madagascar's government that it could cultivate 1.3m hectares of farmland for free when it signed a memorandum of understanding in May. When the company signed the contract in July, it agreed to discuss costs with Madagascar. But Daewoo now believes it will have to pay nothing.


CASE OF MADAGASCAR AND DAEWOO LOGISTICS:

Promises made“It is totally undeveloped land which has been left untouched. And we will provide jobs for them by farming it, which is good for Madagascar," said Mr Hong. The 1.3m hectares of leased land is almost half the African country's current arable land of 2.5m hectares.

But Madagascar could also benefit from Daewoo's in vest ment in roads, irrigation and grain storage facilities.

However, a European diplomat in southern Africa said: "We suspect there will be very limited direct benefits [for Madagascar]. Extractive projects have very little spill-over to a broader industrialisation.“

Asian nations have increasingly looked to Africa to meet their resource needs in the past five years or so. China has been particularly aggressive in building up stakes in oilfields and mines on the continent, sometimes facing accusations of neo-colonialism.


But now the countries are moving from minerals and oil into food. Roelof Horne, who manages Investec Asset Management's Africa fund, said he expected to see more farmland investments on the continent. "Africa has most of the underutilised fertile land in the world," he said, though he cautioned that "land is always an emotive thing".

Apart from Daewoo, an increasing number of South Korean companies are venturing into Madagascar, investing in projects from nickel mines to power plants. State-run Korea Resources recently signed a preliminary agreement with Madagascar to expand collaboration on resources development including mining projects for other metals.

Daewoo plans to start maize production on 2,000 hectares from next year and gradually expand it to other parts of the leased land. The company plans to plant maize on 1m hectares in the western part of Madagascar and oil palm trees on 300,000 hectares in the east.


A failed attempt



Robbing the poor to feed the Rich*The company plans to ship the bulk of the harvests back to South Korea and export some supplies to other countries. It is unclear if any of the production will remain in Madagascar, an impoverished nation where the World Food Programme provides food relief to about 600,000 people - about 3.5 per cent of the population.

*The WFP, the UN agency in charge of emergency food relief, said more than 70 per cent of Madagascar's population lives below the poverty line. "Some 50 per cent of children under three years of age suffer retarded growth due to a chronically inadequate diet," it said.

*The pursuit of foreign farm investments follows this year's food crisis, which saw record prices for commodities such as wheat and rice, and food riots in countries from Egypt to Haiti. Prices for agricultural commodities have tumbled by about half from such levels but nations are concerned about long-term supplies.



A failed attempt*Daewoo said it chose to invest in Madagascar because it remains relatively untouched by western companies. "The country could provide bigger opportunities for us as not many western companies are there," said Mr Hong.

*Daewoo plans to develop the arable land in Madagascar for farming over the next 15 years, and intends to provide about half South Korea's maize imports. South Korea, a heavily populated but resource-poor nation, is the fourth-largest importer of maize.

Finally, the deal was cancelled when the streets´ demonstrations provoked a coup d´état that dismissed President Marc Ravalomanana and formed a new government.


ALTERNATIVE WAY

INSTEAD OF SELLING THEIR COUNTRIES, GOVERNMENTS SHOULD INVEST IN FAMILY FARMING, IMPROVING INFRASTRUCTURES, IRRIGATION, SEEDS, SOILS, LOCAL MARKETS, ETC.

THE G-8 EARMARKED 20 BILLION US$ FOR AGRICULTURE!


Agriculture needs local people, not foreign owners!DON’T SELL THE COUNTRY


THANK YOU!

encounter aefjnrome, november 2010 land grab in africa jose osaba consultant, world rural forum

Documents