Recent claims allege that universities such as Harvard and Vanderbilt are planning to buy or lease vast areas of African farmland in deals that may force thousands of people off their land.
According to a report from the (UK) Guardian,
“Researchers say foreign investors are profiting from ‘land grabs’ that often fail to deliver the promised benefits of jobs and economic development, and can lead to environmental and social problems in the poorest countries in the world.”
In the article, investors were charged with taking over land, while farmers were left with no financial compensation. Frederic Mousseau, policy director at Oakland, stated,
"This is creating insecurity in the global food system that could be a much bigger threat to global security than terrorism. More than one billion people around the world are living with hunger. The majority of the world's poor still depend on small farms for their livelihoods, and speculators are taking these away while promising progress that never happens."
Read the full article here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jun/08/us-universities-africa-land-grab
Photo: farmlandgrab.com
