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Last update : 28.10.2010

In the midst of a severe food and economic crisis, the “land grabbing” trend has grown as an international phenomenon. The term land grab refers to the purchase or lease of vast tracts of land by wealthy nations and private investors from mostly poor, developing countries in order to produce crops for export. The Spain-based NGO GRAIN first drew attention to the land grab issue in its October 2008 brief, Seized! The 2008 land grabbers for food and financial security. Since then, GRAIN has continued to scrupulously document all related reports and media coverage, compiling an immense database of media sources related to the issue. The present report from the Oakland Institute builds on the important work done thus far by drawing attention to the actors facilitating the land grab. In particular, it examines the role of international financial institutions in promoting private investment in agriculture and land markets in response to the global food crisis. Multilateral institutions — for example, the International Financial Corporation, the private sector branch of the World Bank — are further impelling the shift from public to private sector control over food resources. This report explores and highlights the implications and potential consequences of this shift for global food security. The report also questions the viability of the "win-win" argument that has been offered to quell concerns around this trend, pointing out that a myopic focus on potential benefits, such as increased investment in agriculture in poor countries, belies the gravity of the risks while removing the issue of food security for the world’s poor from the forefront of
the debate.

Added on 19 May 2010
Politics :: Economy :: Society :: Agriculture :: Bioenergy :: Sustainability :: International

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