Includes the commodification of land, the effects of the land rush in developing countries, land rush land grab?, how much land is involved?, can land deals work for small farmers?, the actors involved in large-scale land acquisitions, legal frameworks protect the investors, international mechanism for protecting human rights, at national level little protection for the poor.

Draws from the Avante Consulta tool designed for the forestry sector and includes a tool in respect to consultation processes, which are mandatory in the context of the state taking decisions in relation to the award of land and natural resource rights to external investors. Consists of a set of steps that aim to empower the communities in these consultations. Designed to be applied in situations where the co-management of natural resources is being encouraged and the poor must compete with other, often stronger, stakeholders to ensure that their rights are recognized.

Asks what convincing rationales exist for land reform in the 21st century and for land policies and programmes that have poverty reduction as their key objective? Argues that the economic bases of pro-poor land reform need reformulating in the rapidly changing conditions of the contemporary world. The unequal structures of international agricultural trade regimes need to be made integral to thinking about agrarian reform. Includes a table with arguments for land reform.

Identifies disputed control over land as a root cause of conflict in Eastern DRC. Focuses on conflicts between customary and state-run land tenure systems, and claims by some communities to ‘indigenous’ status which are used to relegate others to ‘migrant’ or ‘foreigner’ status. Waves of population displacement have created overlapping claims to land, and an ongoing process of refugee return is currently increasing tensions over these claims in parts of Eastern DRC. Examines efforts to manage this return process and offers recommendations for action by local and international actors.

Report assessed the financial relationships of 17 companies involved in land grabbing, human rights abuses or environmental pollution with 17 selected Swiss banks and institutional investors since January 2011. Financing categories include shares, bonds and loans. Countries involved include Cameroon, Liberia and Uganda.

Includes case studies: land market dynamics and land reform in Western Cape, Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, and Mpumalanga; current government programmes and policies; South Africa’s land market and land reform; private sector contributions to land reform; 3 agri-business sectors and land reform – fruit, timber, sugar; research conclusions: key challenges to land reform now; where are we now, and where are we heading?; getting back on track: CDE’s recommendations.

Includes land acquisition: trends and drivers; experiences on the ground – South Sudan, Uganda, Indonesia, Honduras, Guatemala; what is failing at the national level?; what is failing at the international level?; growing justice – recommendations. Asserts that 227 million hectares have been sold or leased in developing countries since 2001, mostly over the past two years.

Based on experiences gained by the 3 authors through previous research activities and assignments in different parts of Africa and reading of existing literature. Identifies and discusses what is seen as being the most important issues in the ongoing debate about African land rights and land conflicts. Presents and discusses various policy approaches being adopted on the continent to solve land tenure problems and related conflicts.

Report assesses current practices in Mozambique with regards to land delimitation and demarcation and the extent to which they really protect communities against land grabs. Presents additional steps to be taken / piloted to increase communities’ protection against land grabs and better position and prepare them to negotiate with investors. Special attention is dedicated to the challenges facing women in this process.

The author looks at the past 22 years of land reform in South Africa. What is going wrong in South Africa’s post-apartheid land reform programme, and how can its failings be addressed? 22 years after the transition to democracy and the commencement of land reform, there is a great deal of lived experience to reflect upon and a rich literature to draw on. He offers a diagnosis of failures, suggest a new narrative for land reform, and offers some provocations around alternative policies.

Includes the globalisation of food production and consumption – structural changes within the international food regimes and contract farming and global commodity chains; contemporary land acquisition; conceptual frameworks – human rights and corporate social responsibility perspectives; case studies of Rwanda and Kenya.

Includes large-scale concessions and oil palm growing in Liberia, international attempts to qualify big land concessions, the FAO’s Voluntary Guidelines, national law and its relevance, the national legal framework concessions in Liberia, Sime Darby and Golden Veroleum in conflict.