Contains cleaning up the mess at Lands? – an exclusive interview with Hon. Amos Kimunya, Minister for Lands and Settlement; land: political patronage’s greatest weapon – an interview with Odenda Lumumba, National Coordinator, Kenya Land Alliance; corruption thriving in informal settlements – an interview with Jane Weru, Executive Director, Pamoja Trust; land: Kenya’s simmering powder keg by Odindo Opiata, Kituo cha Sheria; land rights for poor people key to poverty reduction, growth – World Bank (Policy Research Report).

Examines women’s land and property rights in Kenya, Sudan and Ethiopia. Considers the legal and other impediments hindering these rights in situations of conflict and reconstruction. Outlines the practical problems faced by women in connection with the legal and traditional structures regarding land and property rights, and makes some suggestions about how the situation can be rectified.

Includes introduction, context, land deals (extent, nature and origins), key issues (land availability, consultations, compensation, agrofuels), impacts (food security, water, social and political effects), conclusions – major challenges include lack of information and coordination, secrecy and flaws in the investment processes, need for transparency and open debate.

Asks and responds to a series of questions about land grabbing, including what is it, what is its scale, its history, its impacts, how does it take place, what is new, how is it tied to water grabbing, what is green grabbing, who or what are the main drivers, what is the role of the EU, what solutions have been proposed, why are guidelines and transparency not sufficient, what systemic changes are needed, what does the concept of food sovereignty have to offer, and what resistance is being undertaken?

Looks at the institutional framework, at current key land policy and agrarian issues, and at the impact of land and agrarian reform. Makes a series of recommendations. Argues that the resettlement programme has failed with not a single project sustainable after 5 years. Argues the need for clear criteria for expropriation of commercial farmland and for farm workers to be a priority target in land reform projects.

Examines recent progress on developing indicators to measure land rights as part of the new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2016. Argues that the current proposed indicators are too narrow and that a more appropriate indicator, which has achieved a high level of consensus, should be adopted by the UN. This would directly measure the land rights of women and men as well as indigenous peoples and local communities. It would also cover a range of land, property and natural resources rather than simply agricultural land and would focus on secure rights rather than ownership.

Examines various grievances against Socfin in Sierra Leone including lack of proper consultation, transparency and compensation, pressure and intimidation, destruction of livelihoods. Argues it is critical that the Socfin’s deal is urgently reviewed.

Most West African countries are in the process of reforming their land policies. Discussions tend to focus on the tools and mechanisms for securing and regulating land tenure. While tools are certainly a vital part of the process, it is important to understand that the same tool can serve very different interests depending on how it is conceived and used. Are we sufficiently aware of the diversity of issues that may be associated with a land policy? And what do we know about the real effects that tools have on all these different issues?

Unprecedented pressures on land and its governance have been created. Covers land, governance and corruption: the linkages; evidence and consequences – administrative and political corruption; actors and forms of corruption; measures and responses; data analysis.

Research conducted under the UN Peacebuilding Programme in Acholi where land conflicts have increased after the peace agreement. Involved community members and statutory and traditional leaders. Examined existing practices for the sustainable transformation of land related conflict. Revealed efficacy of existing community level mechanisms in effectively resolving land disputes. Need to resolve the legal status of local councils.

Includes country context, legal and institutional frameworks, 4 case studies. The new government of South Sudan has begun promoting large-scale private investments as a shortcut to rapid economic development. Recent major land deals threaten to undermine the land rights of local communities. Lack of a regulatory framework encourages opportunistic companies and is a potential source of future conflicts. Need to place limits on land-based investment until an appropriate regulatory framework is in place.

Argues the need to transition the people’s demand for land from ‘land reform’ and ‘land tenure security’ to ‘land sovereignty’. A peoples’ enclosure campaign is needed to help farmers to proactively assert their political control over their remaining lands against potential and actual threats of corporate or state enclosure.