The debate on agriculture and development is heated and, apparently, never ending. This is especially true of the role and position of peasant (or smallholder) agriculture, with people either vigorously defending the sector or saying that in time it will (and should) disappear. Prof. Olivier de Schutter is a clear exponent of the former line of thought, as is evident from his contribution ‘We want peasants’ on Land Portal (26 September, 2018).

This week in Geneva, the Human Rights Council is expected to take a position on the follow-up to a draft Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and Other Persons Working in Rural Areas. Five years after the start of the negotiations, we are at a turning point.

In 2015 the UN agreed a new tranche of global sustainable development goals, signed up to by all member states and due to be achieved by 2030. Among them was a target to increase not only the proportion of adults with legally documented property rights, but also the proportion of adults who perceived their property rights to be secure, whether legally documented or not.

Por : Wilmar Harley Castillo Amorocho (Rebelión)

En Colombia ha sido histórico que el campesinado se movilice por la tener la tierra y trabajarla con fines populares. Agricultura orgánica, producción de alimentos, comercialización en redes locales, junto al despliegue de dinámicas sociales y políticas alrededor de la tierra, cuyo proceso crea otro tipo de relacionamiento entre las personas, con la naturaleza y con el resto de comunidades. Es decir, se construye territorio.

Fernando Eguren, Centro Peruano de Estudios Sociales

By Professor Jeffrey Sachs, Chairman of the Advisory Board of CCSI, University Professor at Columbia University, and Director of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network