Corporate Land Grab in Africa
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bornnraisedoffCMR
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Corporate Land Grab in Africa[/SIZE]
Posted by admin | Filed under New World Order | Mar 19, 2010 | No Comments
From The Freeman
Much of the modern world has been shaped, alas, by governments’ grabbing land from peasants and yeomen, whose families had worked it for hundreds of years, in order to give it to the nobility or other privileged interests. As a result, many self-sufficient farmers became tenants of politically created absentee landlords.
As Ludwig von Mises wrote in Socialism:
Nowhere and at no time has the large scale ownership of land come into being through the working of economic forces in the market. It is the result of military and political effort. Founded by violence, it has been upheld by violence and by that alone…. The great landed fortunes did not arise through the economic superiority of large scale ownership, but through violent annexation outside the area of trade.
According to this story in the Observer (UK), this still goes on today, in Africa:
Ethiopia is one of the hungriest countries in the world with more than 13-million people needing food aid, but paradoxically the government is offering at least 7.5 million acres of its most fertile land to rich countries and some of the world’s most wealthy individuals to export food for their own populations….
But Ethiopia is only one of 20 or more African countries where land is being bought or leased for intensive agriculture on an immense scale in what may be the greatest change of ownership since the colonial era.
An Observer investigation estimates that up to 50m hectares of land – an area more than double the size of the UK – has been acquired in the last few years or is in the process of being negotiated by governments and wealthy investors working with state subsidies.
The land rush, which is still accelerating, has been triggered by the worldwide food shortages which followed the sharp oil price rises in 2008, growing water shortages and the European Union’s insistence that 10% of all transport fuel must come from plant-based biofuels by 2015.
In many areas the deals have led to evictions, civil unrest and complaints of “land grabbing”….
Leading the rush are international agribusinesses, investment banks, hedge funds, commodity traders, sovereign wealth funds as well as UK pension funds, foundations and individuals attracted by some of the world’s cheapest land.
Together they are scouring Sudan, Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania, Malawi, Ethiopia, Congo, Zambia, Uganda, Madagascar, Zimbabwe, Mali, Sierra Leone, Ghana and elsewhere. Ethiopia alone has approved 815 foreign-financed agricultural projects since 2007. Any land there, which investors have not been able to buy, is being leased for approximately $1 per year per hectare.
According to an Ethiopian living in England:
The foreign companies are arriving in large numbers, depriving people of land they have used for centuries. There is no consultation with the indigenous population. The deals are done secretly. The only thing the local people see is people coming with lots of tractors to invade their lands.
All the land round my family village of Illia has been taken over and is being cleared. People now have to work for an Indian company. Their land has been compulsorily taken and they have been given no compensation. People cannot believe what is happening. Thousands of people will be affected and people will go hungry.
This is eminent domain and Kelo writ very large. Some, seeing the involvement of corporations, will conclude this is privatization and modernization. But true champions of liberty and property will be appalled and will condemn it loudly for the theft and usurpation it is.
http://www.thefreemanonline.org/anything-peaceful/land-grab-in-africa/
Posted by admin | Filed under New World Order | Mar 19, 2010 | No Comments
From The Freeman
Much of the modern world has been shaped, alas, by governments’ grabbing land from peasants and yeomen, whose families had worked it for hundreds of years, in order to give it to the nobility or other privileged interests. As a result, many self-sufficient farmers became tenants of politically created absentee landlords.
As Ludwig von Mises wrote in Socialism:
Nowhere and at no time has the large scale ownership of land come into being through the working of economic forces in the market. It is the result of military and political effort. Founded by violence, it has been upheld by violence and by that alone…. The great landed fortunes did not arise through the economic superiority of large scale ownership, but through violent annexation outside the area of trade.
According to this story in the Observer (UK), this still goes on today, in Africa:
Ethiopia is one of the hungriest countries in the world with more than 13-million people needing food aid, but paradoxically the government is offering at least 7.5 million acres of its most fertile land to rich countries and some of the world’s most wealthy individuals to export food for their own populations….
But Ethiopia is only one of 20 or more African countries where land is being bought or leased for intensive agriculture on an immense scale in what may be the greatest change of ownership since the colonial era.
An Observer investigation estimates that up to 50m hectares of land – an area more than double the size of the UK – has been acquired in the last few years or is in the process of being negotiated by governments and wealthy investors working with state subsidies.
The land rush, which is still accelerating, has been triggered by the worldwide food shortages which followed the sharp oil price rises in 2008, growing water shortages and the European Union’s insistence that 10% of all transport fuel must come from plant-based biofuels by 2015.
In many areas the deals have led to evictions, civil unrest and complaints of “land grabbing”….
Leading the rush are international agribusinesses, investment banks, hedge funds, commodity traders, sovereign wealth funds as well as UK pension funds, foundations and individuals attracted by some of the world’s cheapest land.
Together they are scouring Sudan, Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania, Malawi, Ethiopia, Congo, Zambia, Uganda, Madagascar, Zimbabwe, Mali, Sierra Leone, Ghana and elsewhere. Ethiopia alone has approved 815 foreign-financed agricultural projects since 2007. Any land there, which investors have not been able to buy, is being leased for approximately $1 per year per hectare.
According to an Ethiopian living in England:
The foreign companies are arriving in large numbers, depriving people of land they have used for centuries. There is no consultation with the indigenous population. The deals are done secretly. The only thing the local people see is people coming with lots of tractors to invade their lands.
All the land round my family village of Illia has been taken over and is being cleared. People now have to work for an Indian company. Their land has been compulsorily taken and they have been given no compensation. People cannot believe what is happening. Thousands of people will be affected and people will go hungry.
This is eminent domain and Kelo writ very large. Some, seeing the involvement of corporations, will conclude this is privatization and modernization. But true champions of liberty and property will be appalled and will condemn it loudly for the theft and usurpation it is.
http://www.thefreemanonline.org/anything-peaceful/land-grab-in-africa/
Comments
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even tho ppl are pimpin out africa i have no doubt in my mind that in 10 years after africa cleans up its political structure it will be a global superpower like China & India. all of the metrics are there for it to do so, commodities is incredibly good business out there, large oil reserves (much of it undiscovered), increases in exports.... its just a matter of time. its a damn shame tho that rite now the most abundant continent on the planet is being pimped n the ppl starving n dying.
I wish so, but it wont happen. 50 year? maybe.....10 years...hell no -
This has been going on and has never stopped.. 10 years is not going to account for hundreds of years of .. ? /pillage and exploitation of the land and resources in Africa. Greed on both sides will never cease the whiteman for personal gain.. the african for selfishly cashing out and allowing it to happen
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Well Ktulu- wait, CMR made this thread? The ? ?
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it doesnt have to account for all those hundreds of years - u cant change the past but u can alter the future. Africa is growing at such a rate that it will be impossible to hold the country down w/o greatly damaging both foreign n domestic investment. As for greed its far more beneficial to operate in a politically stable country thats growing & has capital flowing thru in a healthy manner. The world is growing n becoming more aware, from all over the world there are tons of businesses & individuals who want to come to Africa to make money but cant b/c of the political situation - as soon as that clears up tho the floodgates for capital w/ flood thru n a good portion of the poverty n hunger in the country will be depleted. China, India, Germany, Saudi Arabia & hell even Russia are good examples to watch. Its not farfetched to believe in Africa turning around to great profitability in 10 years.
Just think of whats happening w/ natural resources such as oil, uranium , even gold.... the world especially America & China is growing in terms of population & is also growing incredibly dependent on these resources & Africa will have to be a business mecca in order to fulfill that need n for those countries to take advantage of that issue. Africa & its foreign investors are in a position where they have no choice but to turn around to profitability.
I see what your saying, but its not about Africa's profitablity (Africa has been sustaining the planet in business for over 6,000 years). it's moreso about distribution of resources. meaning that it doesn't matter how many black billionaires Africa has if they are all agents for the European/white & Asian aristocracy, oligarchy & plutocracy. there needs to be successful black Africans who can break away from outside influence & maintain peace among the various tribes and social classes. only then will it began to rise to the level it maintained prior to the 16th century. -
this is what happens when you have weak governments that cant nationalize stuff
foreign companies come in and take all yer stuff and basically enslave your people -
It'll be ? up if Ethiopia becomes the next Dubai.
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I'm in my early twenties, when I was in primary school we were teached that China/Zhongguo is a tiger nation, meaning it is an country on the rise, economically and politically. Nowadays we are calling nations like Tanzania, Morocco etc 'tiger nations'. I have faith that the current destrcution of monopolism that certain companies had will eventually lead to an independent nation and or political front.
Interesting thing is the congo-belgium king debate at the moment(about wheter albert should endorse the current congo regime or not etc due to congolese backing, new talks with the un etc in the near future, endorsing the current regime would make the un meeting etc obosolete) , european governments have more inlfuence than a lot of people might think and that the once extremely negative impact is turning into a 'wtf have we done, lets get this people some prosperity/wealth' . It's not always about the money, sometimes it's about the money in the long run, and if you want the money in the long run Right now you have to invest in native(EDUCATED) workers, The Europeans, Chinese, Americans, Indians etc know this. Thats why they are fighting iver many contracts/resources right now because a lot of things are still there for the taking(for now). -
'It'll be ? up if Ethiopia becomes the next Dubai.
There are actually prgrams of business development, If you are a business student you can go to Gobna(don't remember the name/region) and help locals set up businesses over there. My school offered a 5 month minor for international business students starting in september '10. As long as locals benefit from the wealth, I would have no problems with ethiopia becoming as wealthy as dubai.(it can never be the 'next'dubai' obviously because of the way dubai is being shaped). -
to some extent thats a minimal problem.... those billionaires at the end of the day are gonna create a large portion of the nation's jobs n contribute far more to the GDP.
As for the influence, that change will come wen a new political regime w/ the right intentions comes into power & reforms the current system. In the long run dividing distribution of resources & trying to ascertain great control over a nation by a foreigner isnt sustainable both for the foreigners & africans -- at some point they will realize that the consequences of that will be incredibly immense. In order to co-exist they have to work together & put money into the ppl of the nation who in turn will contribute to the overall economy.
it is a huge problem.
what your proposing sounds good but is a BIG GIANT "IF." you seem to not understand the fact that money is already being made and Africa could have been developed a long time ago. specific assassinations and debt have been engineered to prevent this from happening, so we are all depending on if the Euros, white diaspora & Asians have a change of heart.
let me put it to you like this; when it comes to the third world very little is about legal profit, but moreso the black market & debt (meaning control of population & resources.)
so, outsiders are not trying to coexist, they are trying to maintain control, because whomever controls Africa controls the world. thats the way it is & how it has always been. if black Africans become to prosporous outsiders lose global power. -
also, poltical regimes with the right intentions have already came into power and been sabotaged by outside supported dictators. i'm sure you already know that, so please be realistic. Africa is growing because the 1st world just can't stop it, not because they want it to. so the Euros, whites & Asians will play along until their power is threatened. so the moral of the story is, only black Africa can return the continent back to old glory, no one else. there will be many more deaths & setback but we will get back to our rightful position on this planet & it will not happen overnight. I know your speacialty is finance and that is very good, but sometimes it's much deeper than that.
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Africa is a continent, not a country. I'm sure you know this but the continous talk of Africa being prosperous and nearly dominating etc is not accurate since the majority of countries, WITHIN Africa, are not rich on natural resources.
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Africa is a continent, not a country. I'm sure you know this but the continous talk of Africa being prosperous and nearly dominating etc is not accurate since the majority of countries, WITHIN Africa, are not rich on natural resources.
Africa has enough resources to sustain the entire planet. every transcontinental dynasty that ever existed had to go through Africa for supremacy (Kerma, Khemet*Native*, Akkadian, Assyrian, Babylonian, Persian, Greece, Rome, Caliphate, Mamluks, Ottoman, Arab Republic, Portugal, Spain, France, Britian, Belguim, Germany, Italy, Dutch, Indian & Now Chinese)
all these invaders held and still hold lucrative territories, so the track record speaks for itself. -
im goin off of current events not speculation. & im not proposing anything im saying that this is happening now & is going to further evolve in the future. u cant ignore that the amount of capital influx & philanthropy in africa isnt goin to show in a postitive way. At the last 2009 economic world forum as well as in The Economist the foreign Ministers & the likes of goldman-sachs, exxonmobil, hsbc, GE, imf, world bank spoke on the country n they themselves agreed that many of africas countries are emerging markets that will further evolve & push africa to become a global powerhouse in the same respect as india, russia, turkey & indonesia. which in turn will bolster great growth for their countries as well.
my reason for standing behind this is b/c regardless of the political regimes intentions u cannot have a sustainable economy in the longrun not even the short term for africa & foreign investors if sml groups want to play "? " n maintain core "control" based on greed n corruption. the capital influx, philanthropy & growth will ultimately direct the next political regime since those factors are dependent on the ppl w/in the countries. In conclusion, in 10 years as a result of this need & current growth Africa will be a global powerhouse. u cant have an economy growing upwards n a sml group of individuals trying to hold it down wen theres more money for everyone n even the more powerful to also enjoy thats y they have no choice but to go up. its not a giant "if" - the growth is something thats occuring right now & will continue.
we are both saying the same things but from different points of view. the reason why I said u "proposed it" is because the majority of the business done by goldman-sachs, exxonmobil, hsbc, GE, imf, DeBeers etc is still "? " & the profits natives make (although sometimes in the billions) in no way equals the profit of outside forces. these are the same guys who have kept Africa in this mess who have promised change for over 100 years. so yes, I agree that the growth is happening because it is impossible to stop it. but there still needs to be some level of autonomy from this Corporatocracy. -
at the risk of sounding negative... really? what is this based on? are we talking it HAS enough or it COULD have enough?musicology1985 wrote: »Africa has enough resources to sustain the entire planet. -
musicology1985 wrote: »Africa has enough resources to sustain the entire planet. every transcontinental dynasty that ever existed had to go through Africa for supremacy (Kerma, Khemet*Native*, Akkadian, Assyrian, Babylonian, Persian, Greece, Rome, Caliphate, Mamluks, Ottoman, Arab Republic, Portugal, Spain, France, Britian, Belguim, Germany, Italy, Dutch, Indian & Now Chinese)
all these invaders held and still hold lucrative territories, so the track record speaks for itself.
Still, it's a continent. Overviewing the fact, is like grouping together South, Central, and North America. I see your point but you are ignoring the fact that Nigeria, South Africa, Ghana, Ethiopia, and Kongo all have individual access to resources andd not ALL OF Africa. -
at the risk of sounding negative... really? what is this based on? are we talking it HAS enough or it COULD have enough?
yes it has enough but has been underdeveloped. even the vast Sahara has enormous underground water and oil resources. -
Still, it's a continent. Overviewing the fact, is like grouping together South, Central, and North America. I see your point but you are ignoring the fact that Nigeria, South Africa, Ghana, Ethiopia, and Kongo all have individual access to resources andd not ALL OF Africa.
i'm not ignoring it, but who drew up the current borders? Europe & the United States for their own gains! remember that? why do u think Nigeria has so much tension now? because the Hausa-Fulani, Igbo & Yoruba have all been forced to live together (something they never had to do before because they all enjoyed autonomy based off of trade).
South Africa & Ghana have done a good job of containing tribal disputes but it is still difficult. look at how the Oromo, Amara, Tigray & Somali peoples have had conflicts & the needs of the even "older" southern tribes of Ethiopia have been ignored. lets not forget the shitstorm Italy started by creating Eritrea (a conflict that continues to this day) & who can forget the Congo where the conficts for precious minerals pumps non stop. this is all a result of post & neo colonialism.
again, all of africa is lucrative. the problem is underdevelopement, tribal conflict, outsiders & debt. and even with all of that, Africa is still growing faster than anywhere else because it's time and there is nothing anyone can do about it. the only question is, "who will control Africa in the 21st century?" -
musicology1985 wrote: »i'm not ignoring it, but who drew up the current borders? Europe & the United States for their own gains! remember that? why do u think Nigeria has so much tension now? because the Hausa-Fulani, Igbo & Yoruba have all been forced to live together (something they never had to do before because they all enjoyed autonomy based off of trade).
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this is over simplified, tensions have always existed in the territory called Nigeria. There have been wars and trade among the yoruba, nupe, hausa, fulani (hausa and fulani people are not the same), benin etc. part of the reason the British could conquer them was because of this "tension".
disintegrating Nigeria would not relieve the tension considering there are places in Nigeria that aren't homoegenous such as kwara, kogi, delta etc. Modern day Italy was created from a union, germany was created from merging prussia and other republics so this isn't unique to Africans alone. Read up on the songhay, oyo empire, mali empire, benin empire and sokoto caliphate to get an idea on how borders in west africa fluctuated.
Pls do not speak on Nigeria till you have done your research properly.
FYI - eritrean identity existed before the italians arrived -
this is over simplified, tensions have always existed in the territory called Nigeria. There have been wars and trade among the yoruba, nupe, hausa, fulani (hausa and fulani people are not the same), benin etc. part of the reason the British could conquer them was because of this "tension".
disintegrating Nigeria would not relieve the tension considering there are places in Nigeria that aren't homoegenous such as kwara, kogi, delta etc.
Pls do not speak on Nigeria till you have done your research properly
aw here u go with this "i'm from Africa so I can speak on it better than u" b.s. I KNOW HAUSA & FULANI IS NOT THE SAME, THATS WHY I PUT THE LINE IN BETWEEN. however, in Nigeria they are mostly united behind common causes, religion & bloodline. as far as the conflicts, thats not the problem. the problem is Euro's, whites & Asians manipulating everything form behind the scenes.
let me clarify what i am trying to say for u afropean. since time immoral blacks have fought eachother over land, resources & philosophy. whoever was the victor would recieve the spoils while leading and everyone would have to live with it out of respect (the Amara conquering the Oromo is a great example of this.)
problem is, now, the euros will back the defeated peoples or whomever will take the money through MI6 & CIA etc, therefore adding a new dichotomy to the complexity that is Africa.
Nigeria had Benin, Oyo, the Igbo, Sokoto Caliphate & Kanembu BEFORE THE EUROS, so i know how things work partna. -
musicology1985 wrote: »aw here u go with this "i'm from Africa so I can speak on it better than u" b.s. I KNOW HAUSA & FULANI IS NOT THE SAME, THATS WHY I PUT THE LINE IN BETWEEN. however, in Nigeria they are mostly united behind common causes, religion & bloodline. as far as the conflicts, thats not the problem. the problem is Euro's, whites & Asians manipulating everything form behind the scenes.
hausa and fulani are separate ethnic groups and wrongly classified as the same, are the igbo's and ijaws the same. How did euro's whites and asians manipulate everything? you mean euro's sent uthman dan fodio to start the fulani jihad? you mean euro's started the kiriji war? you means euro's are responsible for the conflict between the tiv and jukun or ife vs modakeke?let me clarify what i am trying to say for u afropean. since time immoral blacks have fought eachother over land, resources & philosophy. whoever was the victor would recieve the spoils while leading and everyone would have to live with it out of respect (the Amara conquering the Oromo is a great example of this.)
of course i'm an afropean because my veiw of african history is realistic and not utopian. lol @ "immoral" blacks.problem is, now, the euros will back the defeated peoples or whomever will take the money through MI6 & CIA etc, therefore adding a new dichotomy to the complexity that is Africa.
euro's told uthman dan fodio to set up the sokoto caliphate right?Nigeria had Benin, Oyo, the Igbo, Sokoto Caliphate & Kanembu BEFORE THE EUROS, so i know how things work partna.
you don't seem to know a lot considering there are 200 ethnic groups in Nigeria. your revisionist history is pathetic.
the problems in Nigeria are less about geography and more about the shackles religion and ethnic mistrust have placed on the country. -
hausa and fulani are separate ethnic groups and wrongly classified as the same, are the igbo's and ijaws the same. How did euro's whites and asians manipulate everything? you mean euro's sent uthman dan fodio to start the fulani jihad? you mean euro's started the kiriji war? you means euro's are responsible for the conflict between the tiv and jukun or ife vs modakeke?
of course i'm an afropean because my veiw of african history is realistic and not utopian. lol @ "immoral" blacks.
euro's told uthman dan fodio to set up the sokoto caliphate right?
you don't seem to know a lot considering there are 200 ethnic groups in Nigeria. your revisionist history is pathetic.
the problems in Nigeria are less about geography and more about the shackles religion and ethnic mistrust have placed on the country.
man you afropeans on some agent ? . what usman got to do with 2010. Shell oil did more damage to Nigeria than any tribe within it. i know its more than 200 groups, BUT THE FACT STILL REMAINS THAT BRITIAN DREW THE LINES THAT BROUGHT ALL OF THOSE GROUPS TOGETHER.
nigeria is doing its best to make this into a good situation, but sometimes tribes have to fight it out. thats just the way it is. u are a bitter nigerian probably living in england poppin' off at the mouth cause the muslims outmuscled u. -
musicology1985 wrote: »man you afropeans on some agent ? . what usman got to do with 2010. Shell oil did more damage to Nigeria than any tribe within it. i know its more than 200 groups, BUT THE FACT STILL REMAINS THAT BRITIAN DREW THE LINES THAT BROUGHT ALL OF THOSE GROUPS TOGETHER.
nigeria is doing its best to make this into a good situation, but sometimes tribes have to fight it out. thats just the way it is. u are a bitter nigerian probably living in england poppin' off at the mouth cause the muslims outmuscled u.
o yeah, the ijaws did descend from the igbos just like the idoma and possibly yoruba. -
"of course i'm an afropean because my veiw of african history is realistic and not utopian. lol @ "immoral" blacks."
my bad, I meant to say immemorial. my mistake. u still a afropean by the way. nothing I SAID ABOUT THE ETHIOPIANS WAS FALSE. U JUST SUCK WHITE ASS AND U MAD. -
musicology1985 wrote: »o yeah, the ijaws did descend from the igbos just like the idoma and possibly yoruba.
you are on some strong ? if you think the yoruba descended from the igbo's. the yoruba most likely migrated to present south western nigeria from sudan or egypt. the ijaws are related to the igbo's though.
yoruba's have more ties to the egun and bini's than igbos. -
musicology1985 wrote: »man you afropeans on some agent ? . what usman got to do with 2010. Shell oil did more damage to Nigeria than any tribe within it. i know its more than 200 groups, BUT THE FACT STILL REMAINS THAT BRITIAN DREW THE LINES THAT BROUGHT ALL OF THOSE GROUPS TOGETHER.
nigeria is doing its best to make this into a good situation, but sometimes tribes have to fight it out. thats just the way it is. u are a bitter nigerian probably living in england poppin' off at the mouth cause the muslims outmuscled u.
who is speaking about shell? I do gas flaring and pipeline leakages are big problems in Nigeria today.
we are not tribes by the way, we are ethnic groups you clown. do you call serbs or jews a tribe?
i'm not bitter by the way, i have muslims in my family. it's not uncommon for nigerian households to have ifa worshippers, christians and muslims all in one family.
anyone with common sense knows the Nigerian isn't doing its best considering it's a country that has squandered 500 billions dollars in oil revenue and 70 % of it's citizens live at or below the poverty line. more should be done and the recent incidents in jos should be a wake up call.
I don't care if the british, french or portugese drew the lines, fact remains we must learn to co-exist. what happened in 1914 is irrelevant now
This discussion has been closed.