“Land Grabs” occur when affluent countries “invest” in land of developing countries to help ensure food security, jobs, and technological advancement. However, who actually benefits from these investment opportunities? Affluent countries who are invading the territory receive the benefits of land for agriculture, oil, development, and in some cases additional water. After the land is possessed, in many cases, local farmers and nomadic communities are uninformed of the take over from another nation. This can result in many families being displaced suddenly as the land is taken for state purposes. The abrupt disruption that takes place is hardly acknowledged and overseen internationally. By not having accountability, regulation, or oversight of these transactions it allows affluent countries to claim land and “invest” in ways that remove rights of the local people who have devoted their lives to their farmland.
How can countries counteract land grabs? Partnering with other countries and broader agencies of influence offer opportunities to develop policies against land grabs. By creating policies for regulation of affluent nations taking land away from people in developing nations creates a standard and expectation. Then if these expectations are violated follow through for accountability will need to be enforced. This will be key in order to counteract land grabs because if there are no consequences for these actions it will continue to allow affluent countries to take over land of developing nations.
Work Cited:
- Amanpoor, A. S., (2014, July). Land Grabbing by Powerful People Goes Unchecked. Retrieved March 17, 2018, from