Faith Leaders in Africa Decry “impunity of corporate, elite capture of African land”

The representatives of the Africa-based entities appeal for an end “to the financing of large-scale land acquisition projects, corporate agribusiness operations, and speculative investments by public development banks.”

They outline some of the consequences of land grabbing in Africa saying the practice pushes “people off the land, fueling conflicts and provoking displacement and subsequently migration in search of food and livelihoods.”

“In 2021, over 25 million hectares land deals have been concluded in the African continent,” Africa’s faith-based and civil society representatives observe, and add that in most of these cases of land grabbing, “women are often the first to suffer.”

Making reference to the AU Draft Land Governance Strategy. the representatives of the entities in Africa say, “Land is a key factor of production for most economic activities; more especially that Africa is an agro-based economy.” 

“This narrow economic lens obscures the much broader African land context. For most Africans, land is neither a tradable commodity nor an individual possession; it is a gift from God and our ancestors, a common good,” they add.

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As a way forward, the representatives of FBOs and CSOs in Africa call on AU-EU Ministers “to strive to reach agreements that ensure the sustainable use of land for the hundreds of millions of Africans who rely on it, particularly women.”

“Security is also about families having enough food and providing a future for our children,” they note, and pose, “Would our young people really risk their lives crossing to Europe if they could gain a decent living at home?”

The representatives further call on AU-EU Ministers “to embrace the need for transformational change in agriculture and food production.”

“We call on governments to put agroecology on the policy table and recognize its track record of success in producing food with low input costs, with huge potential to create jobs for youth, provide healthy diets, and make farming communities more resilient to shocks,” they further say.

“Let us not forget the climate crisis that is already presenting major challenges to those living on and off the land, despite Africa having contributed so little to the problem,” the FBOs and CSOs representatives in Africa say in their October 22 collective message. 

They say they need “urgent support to enable our food producers to adapt to the challenges.”

Jude Atemanke is a Cameroonian journalist with a passion for Catholic Church communication. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and Mass Communication from the University of Buea in Cameroon. Currently, Jude serves as a journalist for ACI Africa.