Resources

This working paper, authored by several Land Matrix members, raises concerns about the adverse impacts land-intensive, nature-based solutions - although central to the voluntary carbon market (VCM) - may have on vulnerable communities. This research examines the regulatory scope of leading carbon standards and their implementation in offset projects in …

Nature-based carbon offset initiatives have proliferated across the Global South through the voluntary carbon market (VCM). This article, authored by the Land Matrix's Quentin Grislain and Christoph Kubitza, points out that although often framed as “win-win” solutions for both climate mitigation and local development, evidence from Madagascar suggests that …

2023 was seen as a turning point for voluntary carbon markets and their role in addressing climate change and deforestation. While forest carbon projects are praised for funding forest protection and climate mitigation, critics warn they often incentivize over-crediting and allow major emitters to outsource their climate obligations, often at …

As global land cover/ land use change (LULCC) threatens the human’s well-being, accurate detection and characterization of LULCC is of paramount importance. The increasing availability of dense satellite image time series (SITS), together with the ever-improving change detection algorithms, has allowed significant progress to be made. However, much remains to …

The Senegal River Valley has a clear agricultural vocation. Developed by riverside populations for decades, its biophysical conditions offer significant potential for hydro-agricultural, fisheries, and pastoral development. The delta, which forms the western part of the region, is a unique area. Since the 1960s, public authorities have focused on supporting …

Authors: Jorge A. Rincón Barajas, Christoph Kubitza and Jann Lay
Published: 2024
Source: Land Use Policy

This research by Land Matrix partner GIGA conceptualises and empirically assesses the socioeconomic and environmental risks of large-scale land acquisitions (LSLAs) for communal lands in the Global South. These risks include the displacement …

Author: Konrad Hentze
Published: 2023
Source: Remote Sensing Research Group (University of Bonn)

This storyline gives an overview of current land grabbing databases, their lack of spatial information, and how remote sensing datasets can overcome this lack when being used to detect large scale agricultural production schemes.

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Authors: Quentin Grislain and Jeremy Bourgoin
Published: 2023
Source: Land Use Policy

Sub-Saharan Africa is confronted with land issues such as the private appropriation of farmland, land use conflicts, and access to land for women and younger generations. These diverse issues and the promotion of evidence-based policies encourage …

Authors: Jeremy Bourgoin, Djibril Diop, Camille Jahel, Roberto Interdonato, and Quentin Grislain
Published: 2023
Source: Land Use Policy

This paper, co-authored by members of the Land Matrix, looks at how, despite a growing awareness, the patterns and regimes of dispossession are still subject to blind spots, due in part …

Authors: Diop, D., Bourgoin, J., Ba, A., Dièye, M., Segnane, S., Grislain, Q.
Published: 2022
Source: ISRA-BAME

Au Sénégal les acquisitions de terre à grande échelle (ATGE) se développent dans un contexte marqué par de multiples défis qui ont des implications sur la gouvernance foncière. Malheureusement, les données disponibles …

Authors: Ward Anseeuw, Jeremy Bourgoin, and Angela Harding
Published: 2022
Source: Rural 21 - The International Journal for Rural Development

Without doubt, the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure (VGGT) have promoted development and uptake of global and regional land policy frameworks and guidelines. But what about …

Authors: Alexander De Juan, Lisa Hoffmann and Jann Lay
Published: 2022
Source: OSF Preprints

This paper, co-authored by the Land Matrix's Jann Lay from GIGA and using Land Matrix data, investigates whether and how large-scale agricultural investments (LSAIs) influence the risk of communal conflict. The study assessed a …

Authors: Wegayehu Fitawek and Sheryl L Hendriks
Published: 2022
Source: African Journal on Land Policy and Geospatial Sciences

This study, which used Land Matrix data, set out to estimate the role of large-scale agricultural investments (LSAIs) on household vulnerability to food insecurity in sample communities in Kenya, Madagascar and …

Authors: Dr Regina Neudert and Dr Lieske Voget-Kleschin
Published: 2021
Source: MISEREOR

In the Global South, the demand for fertile land has resulted in international investors making large-scale land acquisitions (LSLAs). Africa is by far the most targeted continent in this respect. According to the Land Matrix, 37% of …

Authors: Sam Szoke-Burke, Samuel Nguiffo, and Stella Tchoukep
Published: 2021
Source: Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment

Despite a recent transparency law and participation in transparency initiatives, Cameroon’s investment environment remains plagued by poor transparency. In a new report focusing on agribusiness projects in Cameroon, CCSI and the …

Authors: Danielle D. Legault and Logan Cochrane
Published: 2021
Source: Land

For the past decade, the land rush discourse has analyzed foreign investment in land and agriculture around the world, with Africa being a continent of particular focus due to the scale of acquisitions that have taken place. Gabon, …

Authors: Wegayehu Fitawek and Sheryl L Hendriks
Published: 2021
Source: Land

This study set out to estimate the effects of large-scale agricultural investments (LSAIs) on household food security in one community each in Kenya, Madagascar and Mozambique. An endogenous switching regression model was adopted to control for a possible …

Authors: Caterina Conigliani, Nadia Cuffaro and Giovanna D’Agostino
Published: 2018
Source: Land Use Policy

Recent years have witnessed an increasing interest in land-based investments for food, feed, fuel, and fibre, driven by the volatility in commodity prices, economic growth of emerging economies, policy drivers of biofuel demand, and investor …

Authors: Frédéric Mousseau, Andy Currier, Elizabeth Fraser, and Jessie Green

Published: 2020

Source: The Oakland Institute

Driving Dispossession: The Global Push to “Unlock the Economic Potential of Land,” sounds the alarm on the unprecedented wave of privatization of natural resources that is underway around the world. Through six case …

Authors: Jérémy Bourgoin, Djibril Diop, Djiby Dia, Moussa Sall, Romaric Zagré, Quentin Grislain, and Ward Anseeuw

Published: 2020

Source: Cahiers Agricultures

The food issue related to population growth is at the heart of international sustainable development agendas and feeds the debates on the transitions to be undertaken or supported. …

Auteurs: Jérémy Bourgoin, Djibril Diop, Djiby Dia, Moussa Sall, Romaric Zagré, Quentin Grislain et Ward Anseeuw

Publié: 2020

La source: Cahiers Agricultures

L’enjeu alimentaire lié à l’augmentation démographique est au cœur des agendas internationaux de développement durable et nourrit les débats sur les transitions à entreprendre ou soutenir. Souvent …

Authors: Markus Giger, Emily Mutea, Boniface Kiteme, Sandra Eckert, Ward Anseeuw, Julie G. Zaehringer

Published: 2020

Source: Land Use Policy journal

Many experts agree that more agricultural investment is needed in the global South to improve local food security and reduce poverty. However, there is a lack of consensus …

Authors: Davis, K.F., Koo, H.I., Dell’Angelo, J. et al.

Published: 2020

Source: Nature Geoscience

Tropical forests are vital for global biodiversity, carbon storage and local livelihoods, yet they are increasingly under threat from human activities. Large-scale land acquisitions have emerged as an important mechanism linking global resource …

Authors: Maria Cipollina, Nadia Cuffaro and Giovanna D’Agostino

Published: 2018

Source: Sustainability, MDPI

Increasing commercial pressure on land may lead to land concentration in developing countries, especially in the context of complex systems of property rights. In this article we review through meta-analysis (MA) the econometric findings of …

Authors: Quentin Grislain, Jeremy Bourgoin, Ward Anseeuw, Perrine Burnod, Eva Hershaw and Djibril Diop

Published: 2020

Source: Land Journal

In recent decades, mechanisms for observation and information production have proliferated in an attempt to meet the growing needs of stakeholders to access dynamic data for the purposes of informed …

Authors: Sara Balestri and Mario A. Maggioni

Published: 2019

Source: Journal of Defence and Peace Economics

The paper, which uses Land Matrix data, provides evidence that large-scale land acquisitions in sub-Saharan Africa raise the likelihood of experiencing outbursts of organised violence. This evidence is achieved through a spatially disaggregated …

Author: Emmanuel Sulle

Published: 2017

Source: Tanzania Natural Resource Forum

From the mid-2000s, Tanzania has experienced a significant interest in land-based investments, with foreign investors leasing chunks of land for agriculture, tourism and forest plantations. To date, few land-based investments have generated significant incomes for rural communities, while others …

Authors: Masalu Luhula, Godfrey Massay, Naomi Shadrack, Zakaria Faustin, Sophia Masuka and Emmanuel Sulle

Published: 2019

Source: Tanzania Natural Resource Forum

Tanzanian policy makers have an opportunity to spearhead the implementation of the country’s industrialisation agenda through integrated and people-centred land-based investments. In a country where most people depend …

Authors: CED and IIED

Published: 2019

Source: LandCam

LandCam will track developments in policy and practice relevant to land governance, in the light of guidance or commitments contained in applicable international instruments. To develop a list of ten major policy questions to be tracked, the LandCam team identified land-related …

Authors: James Mayers, Samuel Nguiffo and Samuel Assembe-​Mvondo

Published: 2019

Source: IIED

Chinese investment in Cameroon – in roads, water, electricity, ports, agribusiness and forestry - is estimated to be worth two times more than all other sources of investment combined. But it comes with major implications for forests …

Authors: Michelle Sonkoue and Samuel Nguiffo

Published: 2019

Source: IIED

Cameroon’s current land law appears to have two conflicting objectives: to attract investors through large-scale land concessions while simultaneously protecting biodiversity, defending local people’s rights and promoting rural development. But the legislation governing large-scale land-based investments is outdated and …

Authors: Quentin Grislain, Jérémy Bourgoin, Djibril Diop, Ward Anseeuw, Perrine Burnod, and Djiby Dia

Published: 2019

In recent decades, observatories have multiplied. Some of these observatories, known as land observatories, may reflect the need for knowledge and information in view of the scale and diversity of land issues (large-scale land …