(Bio)Fueling Injustice? - Europafrica

political, economic and social background of the land question in Africa, describe the
role of land in attaining economic development and poverty reduction, and outline how
the land sector should perform its role in the development process. They represent,
according to their authors, “a consensus on land issues; and serve as a basis for
commitment of African governments in land policy formulation and implementation and
a foundation for popular participation in improved land governance”. 556 The European
Commission committed to launch a joint initiative with the African Union to accelerate
the implementation of these Guidelines, including a roadmap to implement principles
and best practices for sustainable large scale investments in farm land. 557 So far, a 9
million euros contribution from the EU has been made for the implementation of the
Africa land policy project, called ‘Capacity building in support of land policy
development and implementation in Africa’. 558
The EU follows and counts on international initiatives, such as the ‘Voluntary
guidelines on governance of tenure of land and other natural resources’ which is
currently discussed at the FAO, to find solutions to land grabbing. 559 The European
Commission announced that it would support the development of principles for
responsible investment in agricultural land. 560 These principles will build upon the
2004 EU Land policy guidelines, which were drafted in 2004 by an ad-hoc EU Working
Group on Land Issues, group which was re-activated in January 2009. They seem to
be similar to the Responsible Agro-Investments principles (RAI) defended by the World
Bank, 561 which are backed by the European Commission. 562 Yet, the RAI have been
strongly opposed by NGOs and farmers’ organisations. In an April 2010 statement,
more than 100 organisations denounced the World Bank’s principles for responsible
investments as a way to support further land grabbing by trying to reduce the risks of
social backlash. These principles create the risk to legitimise land grabbing by creating
the illusion that the diversion of small-scale farming into commercial exploitation can
proceed without tragic consequences to peoples, communities, eco-systems and the
climate. 563 The United Special Rapporteur on the right to food expressed similar
concerns, arguing that “it is regrettable that, instead of rising to the challenge of
developing agriculture in a way that is more socially and environmentally sustainable,
we act as if accelerating the destruction of the global peasantry could be accomplished
responsibly”. 564
The position of the Commission on the RAI reveals more generally its views on land
grabbing: it acknowledges the phenomenon, but it believes that large-scale land deals
can be beneficial to developing countries, that it is crucial that investments are not
discouraged, and that it is up to host countries to make efforts to ensure investments
are sustainable.
The Commission believes that potential problems stemming
from foreign investment on local livelihoods, political stability,
local food security, equity, good governance and environmental
sustainability should be addressed through suitable policy
measures that will not discourage investment, but rather
enhance its quality. […]
Significant efforts need to be made at national level in host
countries to ensure an institutional and legal environment which
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