In international debates about land governance, Mozambique is often mentioned as an example of a country with favorable framework for local communities to benefit from landbased investments. However, it is also one of the countries highlighted in land grab debates for being one of the top countries where foreign companies and national elites are acquiring large extensions of land. It is increasingly clear that in spite of the favorable legal framework and pro-poor policies, local communities are under stress.

This study examines the statutory recognition of customary land tenure in Botswana, Mozambique and Tanzania, which were chosen as case studies because of the diverse approaches to the issue they represent. Botswana's Tribal Land Act (1968) established a system of regional land boards and transferred the land administration and management powers of customary leaders to the boards, which originally included both customary leaders and state officials among their members.

The complex relationship between law, land rights and customary practices is increasingly recognized as foundational to formulating successful development policies. Similarly, the essential role of women’s economic participation to development and the current trend of gender discriminatory land and inheritance customary practices have prompted domestic civil society organizations in developing countries to use statutory provisions guaranteeing gender equality to improve women’s land tenure security.

This Country Programming Framework (CPF) sets out three government priority areas to guide the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) partnership and support with the Government of Mozambique – bringing together innovative international best practices and global standards with national and regional expertise during 5 years from 2016 to 2020.

Under Mozambique’s Constitution and Land Law (1997), communities may legally govern their lands and natural resources according to customary norms and practices, so long as local customs do not contradict national law. However, rising land scarcity and associated increases in land value are leading some families to “reinterpret” custom as sanctioning the dispossession of widows from their marital lands.

After a number of constitutional amendments in 1990 had introduced the need to revise the legal framework for land and natural resources1, the government of Mozambique embarked upon a rather piecemeal process to develop a new policy and institutional framework for natural resource management. The main pillars of this framework consist of various pieces of legislation dealing with specific natural resources, such as the Land Law, the Forestry & Wildlife Law, the Mining Law and their related regulations and annexes.

The need to establish the link between land tenure and food security is increasingly gaining currency as governments and development organizations refocus their effort towards assisting farmers to move away from subsistence farming to commercial agriculture. It is argued that given how land plays a crucial role in the livelihoods of most Africans, food security and poverty reduction cannot be achieved unless issues of access to land, security of tenure and the capacity to use land productively and in a sustainable manner are addressed.

As mudanças no acesso e uso da terra em Moçambique estão a criar novas paisagens, geralmente às custas das populações pobres. Apesar de haver uma legislação progressista da terra, grupos de elite e interesses privados estão a consolidar as suas propriedades de terra, enquanto que os camponeses perdem as suas terras e o acesso a terrenos férteis fica cada vez mais difícil.

Ces dix dernières années, le Mozambique est devenu une cible privilégiée de la ruée mondiale vers les terres. Les investissements croissants dans les secteurs de l’exploitation minière, des hydrocarbures, des plantations de forêts et de l’agriculture industrielle visent le plus souvent des terres rurales qui, en vertu du droit coutumier, sont détenues par les communautés locales. En découlent de fréquents conflits entre les communautés et les investisseurs.

Mozambique has become a hot spot in the global rush for land in the last decade. Growing investments in sectors such as mining, hydrocarbons, forest plantations and industrial agriculture most often target rural land held by local communities under customary law, and conflicts between communities and investors often arise. Existing laws regulating land are poorly implemented and enforced, which is due to the power imbalances existing between the government, companies and local communities.

Sustainable agricultural approaches such as agroecology can help producers increase productivity while protecting the environment and strengthening resilience to climate change. Nonetheless, policymakers rarely support them on a large scale and take-up remains low. This report analyses the factors determining the adoption of sustainable practices in Mozambique, exploring whether a common understanding of ‘sustainable agriculture’ exists, how this is reflected in policy and practice, and what drives farmers (not) to adopt them.

A gestão directa ou indirecta da terra é realizada por actores diversos, como seja, aqueles que intervêm nas Comunidades Locais (artigo 24 da Lei de Terras de 1997), os titulares dos direitos sobre a terra (singulares, investidores) etc, para além da Administração Pública (AP). Contudo, o papel de gestão da terra reservado a AP é muito importante e estratégico.