(Bio)Fueling Injustice? - Europafrica

Methodology: combining authoritative sources for an objective
assessment based on international standards
This report is intended as a research study. It strives to document its statements by
compiling and cross-checking a wide range of the most recent sources, including from
international organisations, civil society (e.g. The Oakland Institute), national authorities
(e.g. the French “Cour des comptes”), academics and the private sector. The bulk of
the facts presented here are taken from authoritative international sources, such
as the World Bank (in particular “Rising Global Interest in Farmland. Can it Yield
Sustainable and Equitable Benefits?,” 2011), the Food and Agriculture Organisation
(FAO) and other United Nations (UN) agencies – including multiagency reports written
for the G20 and reports from the High Level Panel of Experts on Food Security and
Nutrition of the Committee on World Food Security (HLPE).
The findings of the reports prepared for the European Commission, in particular the
“Biofuels baseline 2008” study that was published in January 2012, are reviewed, and
all the recent relevant communications and other documents published by the EU are
analysed. Other studies which echo the voices of affected people are also considered,
notably studies from the African regional farmers’ networks that are partners of
EuropAfrica (ROPPA, EAFF, PROPAC), FIAN International and the EU-funded
International Land Coalition. A full bibliography and detailed references are available in
the full report.
A number of interviews with staff members of the European Commission have
been conducted in an effort to understand and take into consideration the various
approaches to the issue. The European Commission has generally responded in an
open and constructive manner, and the authors of this report are grateful to the people
interviewed for their time and support.
The assessment of the respective impacts and the responsibilities is based on the
international legal framework applicable to the EU and EU Member States, on EU
law, and on the actors’ own commitments.
This report therefore combines both quantitative and qualitative data from a wide
and diverse range of sources, seeking to be as impartial and constructive as
possible and to take into account various points of view.
9