Land, the State & the Unfinished Decolonisation Project in Africa: Essays in Honour of Professor Sam Moyo

Description

This book focuses on the work of one of the leading African scholars on the land question and agrarian transformation in Africa—Sam Moyo. It offers a critical discussion, in conversation with Sam Moyo, of the land question and the response of African states. Since independence, African states have been trying to address the colonial legacy on land policy and governance. After six decades of formulating and implementing land reforms, most countries have not succeeded in decolonising approaches to land policy and the administrative framework. The book brings together the broader debates on the implications of decolonisation of Africa’s land policy. Through case studies from several African countries, the book offers an empirical analysis on land reforms and the emerging land relations, and how these affect land allocation and use, including agricultural production. Most of the chapters discuss how the unresolved land question in post-colonial Africa impacts on agricultural production and rural development broadly. The failure to decolonise colonial land policy and the imported tenure systems has left post-colonial African states dancing to two tunes, resulting in schizophrenic land and agrarian policies. The book demonstrates that the failure by African states to reconcile imported and indigenous land tenure systems and practices is evident in the deliberate denigration of customary tenure. It is also evident in the rising land inequality and the neglect of the agricultural sector, the small-scale and subsistence sub-sectors in particular. Cover Title page Copyright page List of Contributors Contents Preface. The State and the Land Question in Africa: The Unfinished Business Introduction Africa’s Land Question Land Tenure Dualism: A Reminder of Partial Decolonisation The Task for African Scholars Notes Acknowledgement Chapter 1 - Perspectives on “African Potentials” Introduction The Southern African Conflict Regime: Violence and Disarticulation Three Predominant Perspectives on African Conflicts African Potentials: An Alternative Approach? Structural Violence and Accumulation Trajectories in Africa African Potentials in History Conclusion: Future Collaboration with Regard to African Potentials Notes Acknowledgements References Chapter 2 - The Land Question and the Economy: Cues of an Incomplete Decolonisation Project in Africa Introduction Land in the Colonial and Decolonial Projects Decolonisation and Coloniality The Postcolonial African States and the Decolonial Project Decolonisation and the Land Question in Africa Distorted Conception of Land Colonial DNA on Africa’s Land Decolonising African Economies Conclusion Notes Acknowledgements References Chapter 3 - Corporate Power, the State, and the Post-Capitalist Future Introduction Corporate Concentration and Control The State and the Corporates The Revolving Door Election Funding The Financial-Security Complex and the ‘Deep State’ The Future out of the Present State Capture in Africa Another Future? Acknowledgements Notes References Chapter 4 - Policy-Oriented Rural Development in China and its Potential Influence on Rural Development in Africa Introduction Changes in Rural Development Policies in China Rural Development in China after the Rural Economic Reforms Some Problems on China’s Rural Development Experience The Potential Influence of China’s Rural Development on African Countries Conclusion Acknowledgements References Chapter 5 - Agricultural Land-Delivery Systems on Zimbabwe: A Review of Four Decades of Sam Moyo’s Work on Agricultural Land Markets and their Constraints Introduction Land in Context Land Supply and Demand Land Markets and Reform Policies, 1997–2010 Fast Track Land Reform Program (2000–2010) Emerging Land Markets after the FTLRP Land Tenure Issues after FTLRP Conclusions Acknowledgements References Chapter 6 - Cleaning the House, Greening the Farm: Reverse Thinking and “African Potentials” to Combat Desertification in Sahel Region, West Africa Introduction Hausa Society and the Natural Environment of the Sahel Life in a Hausa Village Severe Drought and Collective Memory Land Degradation and Restoration of Farmland Greening Techniques Born From the Hardship of Drought and Famine Harkuki: Local Logic Backing Desertification and Revegetation Land Restoration and Greening Trials Based on Local Practices Conclusion Acknowledgements Notes References Chapter 7 - Reactions of Peasants to Global Capital in Zimbabwe: A Case Study of Tobacco Contract Farming in Mashonaland East Province Introduction The Peasantization of the Tobacco Industry Contract Farming: The Agricultural Finance Solution? Peasants’ Perceptions of Global Capital Dynamics of Rural Tabacco Market Conclusion Notes Acknowledgements References Chapter 8 - Opportunities and Constraints for Black Farming in a Former South African Homeland: A Case Study of The Mooi River Irrigation Scheme, Msinga, Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa Introduction Constraints of Black Farming, the “Accumulation From Below” and Rural Differentiation in the Southern African Context Mooi River Irrigation Scheme and Research Methodology Characteristics of Black Farmers in the Mooi River Irrigation Scheme Land Access and Rental in the Irrigation Scheme Production Processes and Market Forces Crop Selection and Profitability Farmers’ Views on Agricultural Problems Farmer Diversity Conclusion Acknowledgements Notes References Chapter 9 - An Assessment of the Cameroonian Government’s Role in the Mbororo Land Struggle in the Northwest Region Introduction Chapter Outline Background: Access to Land in Africa Cameroonian Land Tenure Profile Mbororo Land Struggles in the Northwest Region Mbororo-Church Land Dispute The Role of the State in Mbororo-Catholic Church Land Dispute Conclusion Acknowledgment References Documents Chapter 10 - From Friends to Strangers? Social Capital and the Fast Track Land Reform Programme of Zimbabwe Introduction Theoretical Debates about Social Capital The Fast Track Land Reform Programme (FTLRP) and the A1 Villagised Model Contested Outcomes of the FTLRP The Role of Social Capital in the FTLRP The Rouxdale (R/E) Farm Case Study Critique of the A1 Villagised Model Discussion Conclusion References Chapter 11 - Land Reform, Belonging and Social Relations: Probing the Linkages between Communal Areas and A1 Villagised Settlements in Zvimba District, Zimbabwe Introduction Background Belonging: Conceptual Issues The Land Question in Zimbabwe Land Occupations under Fast Track Land Reform Programme Linkages between A1 and Communal Areas in Zvimba Discussion Conclusion Acknowledgements Notes References Chapter 12 - Land Contestations after Fast Track Land Reform Programme: Emerging Land Tenure Challenges in Zimbabwe Introduction Sam Moyo’s Contribution to Scholarship on Land in Zimbabwe Land Tenure from a Historical Perspective Land Tenure Systems in Zimbabwe Emerging Pressures on Land after FTLRP Land Contestations after FTLRP Land Tenure Challenges after FTLRP: Evidence from Mazowe Towards A Secure Land Tenure System Conclusion References Chapter 13 - The Legacy of Steve Biko and the Japanese Social Movements Setting the Scenes Negation and Self-Negation Contradictions among the People Return to the Source Concluding Remarks References Back cover