1In many countries of the Global South, since the colonial era only some local, national or foreign elites have been able to access property ownership, and unregistered land is considered State-controlled by law. In rural areas however, most of the land is governed by local or customary norms, which are highly dynamic but based on different principles from State law, and are not recognised under said law. The transmission of land or property does not involve any official deed. These conditions can sometimes result in the dispossession of rural populations by the State, political or economic elites. How can one prove or establish land possession in such a situation?

Potato harvest, Ecuador.

2This dichotomy between State law and local norms became a matter of concern in the 1990s, when “informal” land rights began to be regarded as obstacles to agricultural development. There are two conflicting views. The prevailing view advocates the issuance of private property title deeds in order to reassure economic stakeholders and encourage them to invest. The other view questions the alleged links between private property and investment, and warns about the risks of dispossessing peasants. It tends to advocate the protection of the rights of farmers and breeders over the land and natural resources they cultivate, by building the capacity of the local institutions that govern land tenure.

Herder and his cattle, Benin.

••• Researchers are working to secure land rights in rural areas •••

3By studying land dynamics on the ground as well as land policies and their reforms, and showing that these policies can create more land insecurity, anthropologists, economists and geographers have largely contributed to highlighting the relevance of this alternative view and have provided food for thought on how to put it into practice. Drawing from their field research, they have contributed to the debate on land policies, by developing methods to describe local rights, examining the consequences of the strategies deployed by governments, disseminating their analyses via scientific reports and publications, and participating in think tanks on land reforms, both nationally and internationally.

Sorghum fields in Bassari Country, Senegal.

“IRD’s land research resonated with numerous researchers and West African experts, encouraging them to think outside the box. It served as a basis for my contribution, as land expert, to Burkina Faso’s land policy; it also drove my involvement in the formulation of the African Union’s guidelines on land policies in Africa.” 
Hubert Ouedraogo, lawyer, international consultant, former land expert for the African Union’s Land Policy Initiative