The Indian state of West-Bengal saw two major turnarounds in its rural sector in the eighties. The growth rate of rice production jumped from 1.8 per cent during 1960-80 to 4.7 per cent during 1977-94, and rural poverty fell from 73 to 31 per cent between 1973 and 1999, greatly surpassing achievements of other Indian states.This coincided with the 1977 election of a coalition of left-wing parties, led by the Communist Party of India (Marxist) or CPM, which held uninterrupted power for the following 26 years.

This paper outlines a framework for understanding the complexity of land degradation processes, their impacts, and offers insights into their remediation.

In Ethiopia, 85% of the population is directly supported by the agricultural economy.  However, the productivity of that economy is being seriously eroded by unsustainable land management practices both in areas of food crops and in grazing lands (Berry, 2003).

This study investigates the impact of land certification on sustainable land resource management and long-term investments. It also assesses the impact of land certification on farmers’ perceptions and confidence in land ownership and land use rights in Eastern and Western Amhara Region, Ethiopia.

Recent increases in the level of agricultural commodity prices and the resulting demand for land has been accompanied by a rising interest in acquiring agricultural land by investors. This paper studies the determinants of foreign land acquisition for large-scale agriculture.

With the introduction of rural reforms in the early 1980s, China broke with its
collectivist past and began the arduous transition from a centrally planned to a free
market economy. The People’s Communes – the institutional basis of
agriculture under Mao – were disbanded, and communal land was
redistributed to users through a family-based ‘Household Contract
Responsibility System’ (HCRS), which offered farmers more managerial

Land degradation is a serious problem in Sub-Saharan Africa, where up to two-thirds of the productive land area is reported to be degraded to some extent.  Local communities suffer the most from the degradation of their land and they are therefore fundamental to the widespread adoption of sustainable land management (SLM) techniques.

This discussion paper asses possible feedbacks between the type of land use and harvest intensity and climate.

Examines the particular case of Sudan, but suggests the discussion is relevant to the countries of the African Horn in general and Southern Ethiopia in particular. Pastoralists in the Horn seem to experience similar, if not identical, processes resulting from land laws promulgated by the governments in the region.Concludes that the future of the pastoralist in the Horn of Africa will depend on which realistic land tenure system the government will chose.

Since 2008 there has been a rapid increase in the level of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in agricultural land in Sub Saharan Africa and South East Asia. In 2008-2009 land acquisitions were estimated to be approximately 56 million hectares, 70-75% of which were in Africa (although it is likely that many leases are still pending or not yet executed). Large scale land acquisitions are primarily for agricultural development (circa 80%). The remaining 20% are dominated by extractives and infrastructure.

Foreign acquisitions of farm land in developing countries have become the focus of concern. Many observers consider them a new form of colonialism that threatens food security of the poor. However, investments could be good news if the objectives of land purchasers are reconciled with the investment needs of developing countries. The paper finds that land for agriculture in developing countries has become a target of international investments because of the following:

Although many African countries have adopted highly innovative and pro-poor land laws, lack of implementation hinders their potentially far-reaching impact on productivity, poverty reduction, and governance. To assess the effects of these pro-poor land laws and analyse whether the existing doubts are justified, this report draws on the experience of Ethiopia which, over a period of 2-3 years, registered the majority of rural lands in a rapid process at rather low cost.

This is a desk appraisal of the Alliances for Religions and Conservations (ARC) done for the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad) by the Department of International Environment and Development Studies, Noragric, at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU).