African governments increasingly recognize the potential for land-based development to feed the rural poor and growing urban populations, and to promote equitable human development. Good land policy is central to productive land-based development across farm sizes and types. It enables inclusive, sustainable growth. Governance of, and access to, land is the most important policy choice facing Africa. This issue will determine whether Africa’s growing rural economies follow a Latin America model dominated by large heavily capitalized farms existing side by side with marginal smallholders, or an Asian model dominated by smallholders who increased their prosperity and reduced rural poverty through increased agricultural productivity. This briefer includes the following sections:
- Farmland Patterns Determine the Path to Prosperity
- Effective Land Rights and Access Matter
- Increasing Land-Based Investment in a World of Poor Governance
- Some Viable Interventions Within Food Security Programming