Africa remains a target as Global South "land rush" moves to production

Abstract

In 2007, a spike in commodity prices triggered a sudden increase in demand for agricultural land across the world. It was believed that commercial investors in the Global North speculated on a rise in land and commodity prices. And governments aimed to ensure food security without dependence on the volatile world commodity market by buying up land, largely in the Global South. Now, almost ten years after the term "land grabbing" first entered the popular imagination, large-scale land acquisitions remain shrouded in secrecy. The Land Matrix Initiative aims to shine some light in the deals by providing open access to information on intended, concluded, and failed land acquisitions that have taken place since the year 2000. Over recent years, both the quality and the quantity of the data have improved considerably. This led us to take a fresh look at the current trends in international large-scale land acquisitions.