Author: Kizito Makoye | @kizmakoye
Date: June 1st, 2016
Source: Thomson Reuters Foundation
Tanzania has begun a nationwide programme to seize land left undeveloped by investors and return it to poor farmers, in a bid to quell conflicts between farmers, herders and developers.
For more than a decade, foreign investors have bought up large tracts of land for agriculture or for energy projects, but many have left the land unused.
Agriculture is the backbone of Tanzania's economy and more than 80 percent of the population depend on it for their livelihood.
"Our intention is to identify those holding large areas and farms without developing them. We will revoke their title deeds and give the land to those in need," William Lukuvi, the minister for lands, said last month.