| New global guidelines and European Report on Development take stock of poor peoples’ rights to access land, forests and fisheries |
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The ERD, entitled “Confronting Scarcity: Managing water, energy and land for inclusive and sustainable growth”, was published by the Overseas Development Institute (ODI), Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik (DIE) and the European Centre for Development Policy Management (ECDPM). The report points to the increasing scarcity in natural resources threatening the livelihoods of people, especially in poor countries. “The poor are the occasional winners but frequent losers in a resource-strapped world”, the report reads, pointing out that if the world is to meet the growing demand for water, energy and food in the coming decades, a more sustainable approach on the use of natural resources and consumption will be vital. The report also warns against domestic and international land acquisitions by private companies, in the absence of clear regulations to safeguard land tenure rights of local people. The report suggests that if such investments are to contribute to sustainable development regulatory institutions must be strengthened and opposing forces be empowered. The recommendations of the ERD are in line with the “Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security” adopted on 11 May, that were established following a three year consultation process that involved a variety of different stakeholders. “Giving poor and vulnerable people secure and equitable rights to access land and other natural resources is a key condition in the fight against hunger and poverty. It is a historic breakthrough that countries have agreed on these first-ever global land tenure guidelines” said FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva. The guidelines acknowledge the essential role of investments by the public and private sectors in improving food security, but also emphasises that these should be based on clear safeguards to protect tenure rights of local people. Due to the current lack of such regulations, many people living n poverty are exposed to significant risks arising from large-scale land acquisitions, including violations of human rights, livelihoods, food security and the environment, the document warns. The guidelines were generally welcomed by civil society organisations (CSOs) as an important milestone in holding governments accountable regarding their policies on land, water and energy access. “We commend the process that was adopted for developing the guidelines, which provided the opportunity for civil society and representatives of small-scale food producers to participate at all stages, to draw attention to the real life issues and make concrete proposals”, stated Ángel Strapazzón, of Movimiento Campesino Indígena-Vía Campesina Argentina, representing civil society organisations involved in the guidelines process. However, given the voluntary nature of the guidelines, the effective implementation of the principles by national governments is expected to be rather cumbersome. Critics have pointed to the failure of previously adopted voluntary codes of conduct to strengthen the rights of farmers in poor countries against the growing influence of large-scale businesses. The guidelines should therefore be seen as a starting point rather than an end in itself, they believe. Furthermore, as Frauke de Weijer, Policy Officer for Conflict, Security and Resilience at ECDPM, points out, the guidelines also have some weaknesses with regard to content, in particular relating to the relatively strong leverage assigned to the state as “ultimate decision-maker” with regard to issues of land use and allocation. CSOs have called upon the international community to strengthen institutional capacities in developing countries, and to enhance opposing forces against the overly influence of governments and private businesses in the drafting of regulations. Public sector investment should be also targeted at research on how the competitive position of local farmers could be strengthened and how the productivity of small holders could be enhanced, critics have voiced. Access the Guidelines here: FAO: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (pdf) Read the ERD 2011-2012 here: ECDPM: European Centre for Development Policy Management (pdf) Sources:
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A set of voluntary global guidelines on peoples’ rights to access land, forests and fisheries was adopted by the Committee on World Food Security (CFS), on 11 May 2012. Adopted a few days ahead of the 16 May launch of the 2011-12 European Report on Development (ERD) which focuses on the sustainable management of land, water and energy, the guidelines are designed to inform government policies on administering land, fisheries and forests rights.
