Who Owns African Land? The Foreign Land Grab Crisis Explained

Who Owns African Land? The Foreign Land Grab Crisis Explained

Here's the absurdity of modern Africa:

850 million Africans are food insecure. Meanwhile, foreign governments and corporations have acquired tens of millions of hectares of African farmland—often to grow food for export back to their own countries.

African land grows food. Just not for Africans.

The math is colonial. The contracts are signed in capital cities. And the farmers who've worked that land for generations? They often find out they've been evicted when the bulldozers arrive.

The Scale of African Land Grabs

Since the 2007-2008 global food price crisis, foreign investors have rushed to acquire African farmland at unprecedented rates.

The Numbers:

According to the Land Matrix database, Africa is targeted by large-scale land acquisitions more than any other region in the world.

To put this in perspective: 50 million hectares is roughly the size of Spain. It's larger than the entire country of Cameroon.

Who's Buying African Land?

The major players acquiring African farmland include:

Gulf States: Saudi Arabia and UAE

Saudi Arabia imports approximately 80% of its food. With limited agricultural capacity and water, the Kingdom has turned to Africa.

Key investments:

• Saudi Star Agricultural Development leased 10,000 hectares in Ethiopia's Gambella region (with plans to expand to 500,000 hectares)

• Multiple agricultural deals in Sudan and Somalia

• 2024 logistics hub deal in Djibouti

• 2025 interest in developing Eritrea's Assab Port

The UAE has signed 56 land agreements across Africa, with acquisitions accelerating after the 2007-2008 food crisis. Countries include:

• Ethiopia

• Sudan

• Zimbabwe

• Morocco

• Egypt

• Tanzania

• Kenya

• Angola (2024 deal for rice and avocados—land the size of 9,300 football fields)

The UAE is in active negotiations for 14 additional deals as of 2024.

The pattern: Water-intensive crops like alfalfa are grown to feed livestock back in the Gulf—meaning these deals are both land grabs and water grabs.

China

China has been acquiring agricultural land across Africa, though often through less publicized channels.

Notable deals:

• Negotiations for 2.8 million hectares in the Democratic Republic of Congo for palm oil

• 2 million hectares in Zambia for jatropha (biofuel crop)

• Various agricultural investments in Tanzania and Zimbabwe

A 2025 study found that Chinese agricultural investors prefer countries with private property regimes where foreign land access is legally supported.

Western Companies and Funds

Private equity firms, agribusiness corporations, and sovereign wealth funds from the US, UK, and EU are also major players.

According to the Land Matrix:

• UK is the largest country of origin for investors

• United States follows closely

• Deals often involve biofuels, not food

92% of African land deals have been completed by private companies, not government-to-government agreements.

Which African Countries Are Most Affected?

Top 5 Countries by Land Deals (Land Matrix Data):

Other major targets include:

• Tanzania (shattered hopes, land conflicts for small farmers)

• Sudan (major Gulf state competition)

• Mozambique (food insecure yet hosting food export projects)

• Madagascar (site of the notorious Daewoo deal)

• Sierra Leone (rice and sugar deals)

The Madagascar Scandal: What Sparked Global Attention

In 2008, South Korea's Daewoo Corporation attempted to lease 1.3 million hectares of farmland in Madagascar.

That's one-third of the country's arable land.

The plan: Grow corn and palm oil for export to South Korea. The land would be leased for 99 years. In exchange? Roads and jobs—supposedly.

The deal collapsed in 2009 after massive protests contributed to the overthrow of President Marc Ravalomanana. But the pattern it exposed—foreign entities acquiring African land at unprecedented scale—had already spread across the continent.

How Land Grabs Work

Step 1: The "Unused Land" Myth

Foreign investors and African governments often describe acquired land as "unused," "idle," or "vacant."

This is almost never true.

According to the IIED (International Institute for Environment and Development):

"Contrary to widespread perceptions, there is very little 'empty' land as most remaining suitable land is already under use or claim, often by local people."

What looks "unused" to investors is often:

• Pastoral land used by herders

• Fallow land resting between crops

• Community forests providing food, medicine, and fuel

• Sacred sites with cultural significance

Step 2: Weak Land Tenure Systems

Most African countries have weak formal land rights for rural communities. Customary land—held by communities for generations—often isn't legally documented.

This creates a loophole: governments can declare land "state-owned" and lease it to investors over the heads of the people actually living there.

Step 3: Non-Transparent Contracts

Land deals are negotiated between investors and government officials—often with minimal public disclosure.

According to the UN's Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food:

"Agreements concerning thousands of hectares of farmland are sometimes just three or four pages long."

Obligations on investors—to create jobs, build infrastructure, share technology—are often vague or unenforceable.

Step 4: Displacement and Conflict

The Land Matrix has documented over 50 conflicts triggered by large-scale land deals in Africa.

Communities learn they've lost their land when:

• Fences go up

• Security guards arrive

• Crops are bulldozed

• Water sources are diverted

Example: In Ethiopia's Gambella region, the Saudi Star rice project led to displacement of farmers and pastoralists, protests, clashes with security forces, and ongoing human rights allegations throughout the 2010s.

What Happens to the Food?

Here's where the sovereignty issue becomes stark:

Over 50% of African land deals are partly or entirely export-oriented.

This means:

• Food grown on African land is shipped to Gulf states, Europe, or Asia

• The producing country—often food insecure itself—sees little benefit

• Local food prices may actually rise as productive land is diverted

Countries like Mozambique, Sudan, Chad, and Tanzania show high levels of food insecurity for local populations while hosting large agricultural export projects.

The Water Grab Dimension

Land grabs are also water grabs.

Large-scale agriculture requires massive irrigation. When foreign investors acquire land, they typically gain rights to the water beneath and around it.

In water-stressed regions, this creates competition between:

• Commercial farms (often growing export crops)

• Smallholder farmers (growing food for local consumption)

• Pastoral communities (watering livestock)

The result: communities that have used water sources for generations find them depleted or diverted.

New Trends: Carbon Grabs

The land grab phenomenon is evolving.

According to the Land Matrix, 9 million hectares worldwide are now subject to carbon offset deals—and Africa is a major target.

How it works:

• Companies buy or lease African land

• They plant trees or preserve forests

• They sell "carbon credits" to polluters in the Global North

• Local communities may lose access to the land

A 2024 IPES-Food report warned of "green colonialism"—where climate solutions become new mechanisms for land dispossession.

Mining for "green transition" minerals (cobalt, lithium, copper) is also driving new land acquisitions, with 7.7 million hectares globally going to mining over the past decade.

Why African Governments Allow This

The question everyone asks: Why do African governments sign these deals?

1. Desperation for Investment

African agriculture is chronically underfunded. When foreign investors offer capital, governments see an opportunity to develop infrastructure and create jobs.

2. Debt Pressure

Countries struggling with debt may see land deals as revenue sources. Lease payments and tax revenues (when actually collected) help service debt.

Example: South Sudan's 2024 deal with a UAE company involved a $13 billion loan—double the country's entire GDP. Repayment includes discounted oil sales to the UAE.

3. Elite Capture

Land deals often benefit political and economic elites rather than the general population.

According to a BBC Africa Debate panel, concerns include:

• Lack of transparency in negotiations

• Unclear pricing (is fair value being paid?)

• Failure to consult affected communities

• Corruption in contract allocation

4. Colonial-Era Laws

Many African countries still operate under land laws inherited from colonialism—designed to facilitate extraction, not protect local communities.

What About Jobs and Technology?

Proponents argue land deals bring:

• Employment opportunities

• Modern farming techniques

• Infrastructure development

• Export earnings

The reality is mixed.

A study of land deals between 2000-2014 found that of 22 million hectares contracted for agriculture in Africa, only about 700,000 hectares (3%) were actually under production.

Many deals:

• Never fully materialize

• Create fewer jobs than promised

• Employ workers on poor terms

• Fail to transfer technology

About 100 of the 800+ deals signed since 2000 have been abandoned.

Resistance and Pushback

Communities across Africa are fighting back.

Ethiopia (Gambella)

Protests against the Saudi Star project in 2011 led to clashes with security forces. By 2015, persistent resistance and logistical problems forced significant scale-backs.

Tanzania

A 2024 report by GRAIN and La Via Campesina documented how Tanzania's experience with land grabs "led to shattered hopes, land conflicts, and misery for small farmers."

Sierra Leone

Local communities have organized against large rice and sugar deals, demanding consultation and fair compensation.

Legal Challenges

In Tanzania, male elders filed a lawsuit against the government and foreign investors planning a sugar plantation. Though the lawsuit had limitations, it marked growing willingness to use legal channels.

What Would Protect African Land?

1. Strong Land Rights

Communities need legally recognized rights to customary land. Without documentation, they have no standing when investors arrive.

2. Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC)

International standards require that communities affected by development projects give informed consent before deals proceed.

In practice, this rarely happens. Communities are often informed after contracts are signed—if at all.

3. Transparent Contracts

All land deals should be publicly disclosed with clear terms on:

• Duration

• Rent payments

• Job creation requirements

• Environmental protections

• Food security provisions

4. Limits on Export-Oriented Production

Countries hosting food export projects while their own populations go hungry need policies ensuring local food security comes first.

5. Regional Coordination

The AU and regional bodies could establish frameworks preventing a "race to the bottom" where countries compete by offering weaker protections.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much African land has been sold to foreign investors?

According to the Land Matrix database, over 50 million hectares of African land have been acquired through large-scale land deals since 2000. This is roughly the size of Spain and represents the largest share of global land acquisitions.

Which countries are buying African farmland?

Major investors include Gulf states (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar), China, and Western private companies from the UK, US, and EU. Saudi Arabia and the UAE have been particularly active, driven by food security concerns since they import most of their food.

Is African land actually "unused"?

Rarely. Land described as "unused" or "idle" by investors is typically under customary use by local communities—for farming, grazing, fallow rotation, or as community forests. Formal land tenure systems often fail to recognize these traditional uses.

Do land deals benefit African countries?

Results are mixed. While deals promise jobs, infrastructure, and investment, studies show only about 3% of contracted land was actually under production as of 2014. Many deals fail to deliver promised benefits, and over 50 have triggered conflicts with local communities.

What is a "land grab"?

A land grab refers to large-scale acquisition of land (typically over 1,000 hectares) by foreign governments, companies, or investment funds, often at the expense of local communities who lose access to the land. The term became prominent after the 2007-2008 food price crisis accelerated such acquisitions.

The Bottom Line

African land is being acquired at an unprecedented pace—not by Africans, but by foreign governments seeking food security, corporations seeking profits, and funds seeking returns.

The pattern is colonial in nature even if the contracts are modern:

• African land grows crops

• Those crops are exported

• African communities are displaced

• African food insecurity persists

This isn't investment. It's extraction with better paperwork.

The solution isn't to ban all foreign investment in agriculture. It's to ensure that:

1. African communities have secure land rights

2. Deals require genuine consent from affected people

3. Contracts are transparent and enforceable

4. African food security takes priority over exports

5. Benefits actually reach the people whose land is being used

Until then, the question "Who owns African land?" will continue to have an uncomfortable answer:

Increasingly, not Africans.