Gender implications of agricultural commercialisation: the case of sugarcane production in Kilombero District, Tanzania

Since the global food crisis of 2008 the Tanzanian government, amongst other African governments, has made food security through increases in agricultural productivity a policy priority. The emphasis in Tanzania is on commercialisation, with a particular focus on large-scale rice and sugarcane production. Gender equity within African agricultural production is a critical issue; yet limited empirical research exists on the gender implications of agricultural commercialisation now taking place in the region. This paper presents findings from fieldwork conducted in Kilombero District of Tanzania in 2013 and 2014. The research takes the country’s largest sugar producer – Kilombero Sugar Company Ltd – as its focus and analyses the socio-economic implications of the commercialisation of sugarcane production from a gender perspective. The findings demonstrate the significance of gender relations in the development of commercial agricultural business models, local socio-economic development and land titling measures. They also illustrate the pressures and benefits for relationships and resource-sharing within households in the transition from food crops to sugarcane production

The biofuels boom and bust in Africa: a timely lesson for the New Alliance initiative

Policies promoting biofuels development through financial incentives in Europe and in the United States of America are major drivers of the ‘land rush’ in many African countries. Yet, we know that most of the first projects have not achieved their intended objectives on the ground. Amidst these controversial and failed investments, which continue to hold large tracts of land in Africa, the G8 initiative called the New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition is trying to attract substantial new private investment in agriculture in ten African countries. The New Alliance focuses on public-private investments, with host governments offering large tracts of land to investors. These land-based investments follow similar patterns to unrealised ambitions of biofuels investments. Given the evidence of negative impacts of biofuels investments on rural communities’ access to and control of land, water and forests, the New Alliance implementing partners need to consider lessons from the biofuels rush, and take different pathways to avoid such impacts

The politics of inclusive business models in agricultural investments: The case of sugarcane production in Kilombero, Tanzania

Philosophiae Doctor - PhDIn recent years, donors, policy makers, and non-governmental organisations working on land and agricultural issues have latched onto the catch phrase ‘inclusive business models’ as an alternative to large-scale land acquisitions. Development actors promote these inclusive models, such as contract farming or outgrowing schemes, to mitigate the often significant and adverse impacts of land grabs on rural people while still supporting foreign direct investments, particularly in agriculture in developing countries. The need to increase investments in agriculture in developing countries is clear, however, it is important to assess how such investments are implemented and who benefits from them and who loses

Social differentiation and the politics of land: Sugar cane outgrowing in Kilombero, Tanzania

The privatisation of formerly state-owned sugar cane estates and mills in the late 1990s led to the reconfiguration of the ownership structure and production of the Tanzanian sugar industry. This included the decentralisation of sugar cane production operations to outgrowers and their associations. Based on an investigation of sugar cane outgrowers of the Kilombero Sugar Company, this article explores the outcomes of this transformation and the dynamics of social differentiation, and the ways in which this is shaped by Tanzania’s institutional and legal framework governing the sugar industry. While increased sugar cane production has created jobs and income for some outgrower households, it has also been associated with several adverse impacts. Large-scale outgrowers have rapidly captured the most lucrative business opportunities and the land they require, marginalising smaller outgrowers. This is further exacerbated by heightened competition among farmers and patronage relations affecting the distribution of harvest quotas and cheap sugar imports. The outgrower model is central to national development initiatives such as the Southern Agriculture Growth Corridor of Tanzania and ‘Big Results Now’. Despite the grand ambitions of large-scale agricultural commercialisation, who wins and who loses out depends more on the local political economy, where the sugar industry, local business, political elites and local communities compete for the benefits of expanded sugar production.IS

The voices of smallholders and women in Tanzania’s agricultural corridor

The Tanzanian government created the Southern Agricultural Growth Corridor of Tanzania (SAGCOT) with the vision of modernising and commercialising agriculture in Tanzania and thereby bringing about a ‘green revolution’. However, the SAGCOT policy documents do not explicitly state how the corridor would improve smallholders’ participation,voice, and governance in the agricultural sector. Smallholder producers, particularly women, are concerned about the potential impact the growth corridor will have their access to use, control and ownership of land and other natural resource rights. Smallholders lack clarity on how they will be adequately compensated. And whether new settlement areas will be provided – if the land they are using for agriculture and grazing is allocated to investors

Biofuels investments in Tanzania: Policy options for sustainable business models

Biofuels: globally advocated as an environmentally friendly alternative source for energy US and Brazil: global producers of biodiesel and ethanol Southern African Nations: the “Middle East” of biofuels -Chief Executive of the UK biofuels suppliers Initial projects started without guidelines, policy, legal and regulatory framework Acquisitions of large tracts: threat to food security & tenure of land Foreign vs home developed policie

Bureaucrats, Investors and Smallholders: Contesting Land Rights and Agro-commercialisation in the Southern Agricultural Growth Corridor of Tanzania

Since the triple crises of food, fuel and finance of 2007/8, investments in agricultural growth corridors have taken centre-stage in government, donor and private sector initiatives. This article examines the politics of the multi-billion dollar development of the Southern Agricultural Growth Corridor of Tanzania (SAGCOT). The corridor’s proponents aim to create an environment in which agribusiness will operate alongside smallholders to improve food security and environmental sustainability, while reducing rural poverty. Based on three case studies, comprising one of a small-scale dairy company and two large-scale sugar companies, all operating with smallholders, this paper interrogates the political dynamics that shape the implementation of SAGCOT on the ground; in particular, the multiple contestations among bureaucrats, investors and smallholders over access to land and other resources, and contending visions for agricultural commercialisation. Despite the widespread support it received from government, donors and investors, the paper argues that SAGCOT’s grand modernist vision of the corridor, centred on the promotion of large-scale estates, has unravelled through contestations and negotiations on the ground

Smallholder Views on Chinese Agricultural Investments in Mozambique and Tanzania in the Context of VGGTs

Based on a case study in each country, this study documents the views of Mozambican and Tanzanian smallholders regarding Chinese agricultural investments and the extent to which investors abide by their legitimate land tenure rights as defined by the Voluntary Guidelines for the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Forests and Fisheries in the Context of National Food Security (VGGTs). The VGGTs offer guidelines to government on how to protect the land tenure of rural communities when land is being acquired for large-scale land investments. The study also assessed the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on smallholders. Due to COVID-19, instead of fieldwork, we conducted telephone interviews with 20 smallholders in Mozambique and 35 in Tanzania. The Mozambican case showed that even when land set aside for investors was not in dispute, smallholders still had unmet expectations, especially regarding investors’ corporate social responsibility activities. In the Tanzanian case, even though the land leased by the Chinese investor had been designated as general land, it had laid fallow for a long period, and smallholders had moved back onto the land, only to be displaced in 2017. Although smallholders’ views on the investment were mixed, the case underscored the need for government to assess current land use before allocating it to investors—regardless of how the land is classified and especially in areas where land shortages are creating conflict. The cases show that even if communities are consulted about proposed land investments, guidelines need to include clauses that allow for ongoing communications between investors, communities and government officials such that if communities are unsatisfied with the results of the investment, renegotiation is possible. Further, in the event of crises, such as COVID-19, investors should partner with communities and government to limit the extent of harm in communities as a result of the crisis

The voices of women and smallholder farmers in Angola’s Lobito Corridor

The development of the Benguela railway in the Lobito Development Corridor links Angola’s interior with its coastal port of Luanda. This corridor has boosted the mobility of the poor, as well as professionals –teachers, nurses, and others – while also yielding other benefits. A key outcome has been the growth of intermediate trade centers’ where goods, knowledge, information, and news are exchanged. The corridor’s multiplier effects have not been maximised because of poor public and private-sector investments in key sectors such as agriculture and agriculture-related infrastructure –irrigation, inputs, extension services, and feeder roads. The corridor authority and operators of the railway facility need to cater for each user's needs, especially women farmers associations and women traders dealing with perishable goods, particularly vegetable