Land accumulation by investors or investment companies for large-scale farming to the disadvantage of small-scale farmers is part of the framework within which gender equitable agricultural commercialisation is being discussed in the Agricultural Investment, Gender and Land in Africa conference. Days 1 and 2 of the workshop detailed the diversity of such investments – referred to as ‘Business Models’. Case study evidence demonstrated the often disadvantaged terms on which women, in comparison with men, are incorporated into these schemes, regardless of the investment model. The debate around the disadvantages faced by women in labour markets has already been explored in the feminist literature, along with the understanding that their persistence reflects how deeply gender bias is embedded across a range of institutions. The transformation of rural production systems, their increasing commodification and the individualisation of productive resources, are likely to be experienced very differently by women and men.
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One of today’s parallel sessions of the Agricultural Investment, gender and Land conference looked at the business models through which investors engage farmers .
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by Sue Mbaya, Land Policy Initiative
The controversy surrounding large scale land based investments (LSLBI) is multifaceted. The parameters of this controversy are well known and have received wide coverage. They include the extent of land occupied by LSLBI, the extent of stakeholder consultation – or lack thereof, the quality of land governance institutions and their capability to oversee transactions of the magnitude characteristic of LSLBI.
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by Sue Mbaya, Land Policy Initiative
The controversy surrounding large scale land based investments (LSLBI) is multifaceted. The parameters of this controversy are well known and have received wide coverage. They include the extent of land occupied by LSLBI, the extent of stakeholder consultation – or lack thereof, the quality of land governance institutions and their capability to oversee transactions of the magnitude characteristic of LSLBI.
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