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Background
Commercial pressure on land has received much media attention. Over the last few years, the situation has worsened bringing about challenges related to food security and the environment, as well as long-term investment opportunities and peace. Many studies are attempting to catalogue land sales and leases by foreign investors. Eminent international authorities are taking a stance and calling for regulation.
In West Africa, these challenges concern mainly the land law reforms underway; property rights and land appropriation regulations versus commercial law (states, traditional leaders, user rights upon optimisation of the land, etc.); the trepidation of some countries to be unable to assure their food security in the future; risks of expropriation; use of natural resources to the detriment of local populations; and opportunities in terms of employment, infrastructure and market revival, etc.
Objectives
The meeting's aim is to define a roadmap for West Africa which promotes responsible and sustainable investment in land. In particular, debates aim to:
- Raise awareness among leaders of frameworks respectful of human rights, the economic, land and social environment for investment in West African land.
- Lead a dialogue to better take into account these frameworks in the evaluation and agricultural and investment policy reform processes of OECD and West African countries (peer reviews, for example).
Outcomes of the meeting also contribute to the International Land Coalition's global initative on "Commercial Pressures on Land".
Participants
Government representatives, investors, agricultural producers’ networks, research institutes, regional organisations and international agencies participated in the roundtable debates. Members of the Food Crisis Prevention Network (RPCA) also joined the discussion within its 25th annual network meeting.
Results
Bringing together some 200 participants, the Bamako meeting highlighted a large diversity of viewpoints on opportunities and risks related to land transactions. Discussions paved the way for consensual solutions and proposals for co-ordinated actions in West Africa, calling for more synergy between regional institutions. The stakeholders agreed on the need to address this issue based on a threefold approach: human rights, land policies and investment frameworks. The participating institutions agreed to:
- Engage in joint initiatives aiming at deepening the understanding of land issues (> monitoring/information systems on investments in land);
- Promote/facilitate exchanges, consultations and co-operation between West African States and the inclusion of civil society actors in the debate;
- Develop regional capacities to provide support to national land policies;
- Strengthen negotiation capacities of host states to promote regulatory frameworks that respect human rights principles.
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