Following the end of apartheid, South Africa’s government set itself ambitious goals with a planned land reform. However, there have since been barely any changes in the country’s agricultural structure, and the positive impacts that were hoped for on rural livelihoods have hardly materialised. A critical assessment of 22 years of land reform policies.
The year 2016 marks 15 years since the new wave land reforms became operational in Tanzania. Despite its ambitious goals – encouraging land registration and titling, and empowering women and other vulnerable groups – the results are disillusioning. A brief overview of 15 years of implementation, using the Village Land Act as a case study.
Sierra Leone is one of the least developed countries in the world and is still recovering from a civil war that ended in 2002. Increasingly, the Sierra Leonean government seeks to attract foreign investors through providing opportunities for large-scale land leases for the development of agribusiness. This has triggered a rapid transformation process that poses a considerable threat to food security and social stability. Despite being a pilot country for the implementation of the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure, there is no real change on the ground as yet.
The buying up of farmland by international investors is viewed highly critically. However, sweeping judgements could be inappropriate, as our author demonstrates with survey results from Ethiopia and Uganda.
Fuelwood and charcoal continue to be indispensable in cooking the daily meal for most people in sub-Saharan Africa; in addition, wood as a fuel represents an important source of income. Pressure on forest resources as well as health hazards through indoor air pollution have resulted in more calls for switching to alternative energy sources. Our authors suggest another alternative: improving the existing supply chains.
A project in Burkina Faso has given a clear demonstration of what supporting family farms can achieve in terms of poverty alleviation and rural development. One important success factor was the transfer of land to farmers, accompanied by a secure land-tenure policy adapted to their needs.
In Kenya, smallholders are improving the health of their families by growing local cereal varieties and indigenous vegetables. The use of traditional foods is even helping people with HIV/AIDS.
It would be difficult to imagine the diet of the local consumers around Lake Victoria without the silver cyprinid. The small fresh water sardine also plays an important role in women’s participation in Kenya’s fishery sector. However, in spite of intensive efforts, there is still a long way to go before they have achieved an equal role in the value chain.
Mauritania’s coastal waters are among the world’s richest fishing grounds. However, just as in many other countries around the globe, the sustainable use of this resource is under threat from illegal fishing and overfishing. KfW contributes to protecting the valuable fishing grounds with the aid of modern surveillance systems and rigorous conservation and species protection measures.
An ingenious combination of plant breeding, contract farming and processing has enabled smallholder tomato growers to tap new markets in Tanzania’s Arusha Region. Two improved tomato cultivars released from AVRDC lines are at the centre of this success story.
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