Target 1.4 of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) seeks to ensure that “all men and women, particularly the poor and vulnerable, have equal rights … to ownership and control over land and other forms of property.”

This target’s inclusion under SDG Goal 1, on “ending poverty in all its forms,” signifies a new global recognition that secure land tenure should be a central strategy in combating poverty. However, this land agenda has not been prominent in recent SDG reporting processes of governments.

Mobile phone use is increasing in Sub-Saharan Africa, spurring a growing focus on mobile phones as tools to increase agricultural yields and incomes on smallholder farms. However, the research to date on this topic is mixed, with studies finding both positive and neutral associations between phones and yields. In this paper we examine perceptions about the impacts of mobile phones on agricultural productivity, and the relationships between mobile phone use and agricultural yield.

Land use planning is rarely a neutral process. Stakeholders often use it to control access to, ownership
of and use of land. It is therefore essential to have a participatory tool (with constantly counterchecked processes) and flexible monitoring approaches to ensure sustainable land use and secure
land tenure. The Practical Guide presents a unique approach to simultaneously addressing land
use and tenure security challenges at the country level. The information and processes presented

Le nouveau report de GLOCON examine l'impact de l'exploitation minière industrielle au Burkina Faso sur la population locale ; il présente la perspective des résident·e·s de six mines industrielles. Des enquêtes dans les villages riverains montrent que, au contraire qu’aux promesses faites par les sociétés et les autorités étatiques, les conditions de vie ne se sont pas améliorées. Par contre, les répondant·e·s rapportent la perte de leurs moyens de subsistance et des problèmes de santé, ainsi qu’un comportement irrespectueux de la part des sociétés minières.

GLOCON's new country Report examines the impact of industrial mining in Burkina Faso on the local population, focusing on the view of residents of six industrial mining locations. Surveys in the affected villages demonstrate that, in contrast to the promises of mining companies and state authorities, the opening of the mines has not improved the conditions of living in the villages. On the contrary, respondents emphasise negative impacts on their livelihoods and health, and that they feel disrespected by the mine operators.

La notion d’accaparement de terres est devenue courante dans l’étude d’un grand nombre de transformations agraires en cours dans les Suds. Elle souffre cependant d’un grand flou définitionnel et des difficultés à établir clairement le périmètre de son objet. À partir d’études de cas tirés du terrain ivoirien, cette contribution propose de redéfinir ce champ d’études afin de tenir compte à la fois de l’émergence d’un problème public qui est l’accaparement des terres et des transformations dans l’économie politique du capitalisme agraire que ce terme recouvre.

Digital technologies cut off access to land

Despite promises to fix unjust land governance, a new study shows that digital technologies can further land grabbing and inequality.

The current relationship between Syria and the West cripples any real prospect for reconstruction. Western sanctions on reconstruction as a political tool aimed at the regime, have wide-ranging negative impacts on the civilian population – while having little hope of political success. For agriculture the repercussions of sanctions on reconstruction are severe, affecting refugee returns, livelihood recovery, food security and stabilization.

Investment in land administration projects is often considered key for agricultural productivity and rural development in developing countries. But the evidence on such interventions is remarkably mixed. This paper reviews the literature and discusses a number of challenges related to the analysis of the impacts of land administration programs, focusing on developing countries where the starting position is one of land administration systems based on the Napoleonic code, with existing individual rights that may be imperfect and insecure.

This paper is about the research methods, stages, challenges and results of the LASCAUX programme, a European research programme that took place over five years, between February 2009 and January 2014. The LASCAUX programme is concerned with food issues, “from plough to plate”, from a mainly legal perspective. More particularly, the nuclear core of the programme is based on the study of the concept of "food security", according to the definition from the FAO.

Poverty incidence is one of the most critical concerns in Botswana and the government has resolved to eradicate this problem and ensure that every citizen live in a dignified and acceptable condition consistent with the national aspirations as set out in the National Vision 2016. Currently, rural areas are persistently experiencing the highest poverty incidence compared to any other place in the country. This has been the case ever since we have measured the extent of the poverty problem in 1985/86.