Post on 05-Apr-2018
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Looking behind the screen:
National development versus local survivalin rural Rwanda
An Ansoms14 June 2012
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Overview
A new agricultural model for Sub-Saharan Africa
The Rwandan development model Rural development policies
Swampland reorganization
Two case studies
Large-scale land deals through foreign investment
Large-scale land deals through local elite capture Impact of large-scale land deals upon rural
livelihoods
Policy recommendations
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2010 Report Rising Global Interest in Farmland
Acknowledges potential of large-scale land deals -> improved access totechnology / capital markets / infrastructures / institutions that allowincreased productivity and effectiveness in the utilization of land
But risks of large-scale deals -> Recommendations in terms of
promoting responsible corporate behaviour (side of the investors)
enhancing good land management (side of government)
The World Bank Discourse:
a seeming contradiction?
2008 World Development Report Agriculture for Development
A Green Revolution for Sub-Saharan Africa ~ a productivity revolutionin smallholder farming
Analysis of challenges for smallholders
Analysis of institutional innovations to improve smallholders
competitiveness
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2008 World Development Report Agriculture for Development
Report does not support smallholder farming per se, but commercially-
oriented, entrepreneurial smallholder farming (Akram-Lodhi, 2008) ->only applicable to minority of small-scale entrepreneurs
3 pathways out of poverty
Through agricultural entrepreneurship for smallholders
Through the rural labor market and nonfarm economy By migrating to towns, cities or other countries
The World Bank Discourse:
a seeming contradiction? Not at all
Dominant view upon the new agriculture for Sub-Saharan Africa
Focus on maximal production and productivity
Either through involvement of investors operating at large scale
Either through transformation of innovative smallholders into agriculturalentrepreneurs
Ignoring impact of policies upon equity, distribution, local agency, identity
Requires focus on capacities and needs of different peasant groups Requires focus on political economy dimension and elite incentives
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The Rwandan model:
accomplishmentsTechnocratic
governance: top 45 in
WB doing businessreport; among 30% leastcorrupt; among 50% bestin terms of government
effectiveness
Free and compulsoryprimary education -> net
enrolment 75% (2001) ->96% (2008); secondary:27%, tertiary 5%
Aid darling, budget aid:50% raise between
2007 - 2010
Economic growth:8% on average;
8,8% in 2011
Private investment: 12% ofGDP (6 times more than a
decade ago)
Health: infant mortality106 (2000) -> 59
(2010) + decrease inhealth mortality;
progress in malariaprevention, improvedhealth infrastructure
Improvedaccess to waterand electricity
Gender!! Over50% women in
parliament
Food self sufficient;improved agricultural
production
Enlightened leadership;friends with Blair, Gates
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GENERAL OBJECTIVES
Transformation of agricultural sector in professionalizedmotor for economic growth
Creating economies-of-scale effects
Agriculture-dependent population from 85 -> 50% (2020)
Rural Development :
policy priorities
STRATEGIES
Agrobusiness and role of private capital in agriculture
Larger land holdings in individual or collective hands
Enforcing the adoption of modern productiontechniques + market-orientation
=> Re-engineering rural society
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Swampland valorisation policies
Economies of scalein production
Economies of scalein market integration
From small-scale individual to(collective) large-scale user
rights => large-scaleproduction
Monocropping
Regional
specialisation
Market-orientedhigh value
crops
Cooperatives
Collective harvest
+ collective marketisation
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Understanding peasants logics:
dealing with risk and uncertainty
Concentrationon 1 crop in
monocropping
Gatheringharvest bycooperative
Selling cropcollectively on
the market
Return ofmoney to
peasant
Buying what is
needed onmarket
New seeds,fertilisers?
RISK 1: Cropdisease, climate
RISK 2: Cropmanagement by
cooperative
RISK 3: Prizesof crop on
market
RISK 4: Moneymanagement by
cooperative
RISK 5: Prizesof other needs
on market
RISK 6:Conditions
imposed bycooperative
RISK 7: Timing
Potential profitlarger than
before???
Potential riskis also muchlarger than
before!!!
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Moreover: elite capture of opportunities
provided by cooperatives
Phase 0: Revalorisation of
marshland allows broker toinstrumentalise adevelopment project WFP
Phase 1: collective action in
form of associations ->clientelism - used byinfluential broker to reinforcepower
Phase 2: collective action inform of cooperative ->extreme exploitation andopen corruption
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B 1,8%
C 20,9%
D 53,6%
A 0,9%
E 20,4%
F 2,3%
Small-scale
Large /
medium-scale
Farmer
Non-Farmer?
RWANDAN CASE
A
B
C
D
E
F
Trickle-
downeffect?
Polarization
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B 1,8%
C 20,9%
D 53,6%
A 0,9%
E 20,4%
F 2,3%
Small-scale
Large /
medium-scale
Farmer
Non-Farmer
RWANDAN CASE
Broad-basedagricultural +derived non-
agricultural growth
Increased demand
for off-farm labour
TRICKLE - DOWN
IN TERMS OFPOLICIES?
Understand risk-
cooping behaviour
Enhance agency
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Need for inventive solution to go beyond current ecologicalbarrier BUT not through the rigid top-downreengineering
Facilitates new types of land grabs, and accelerates oldtypes of grabs (opportunities captured by elites)
Need for a voice of the rural poor in policies that concernthem: bringing the peasants back in at all levels, butHOW?
Real problem = Authoritarian governance structure - lack ofbottom-up accountability => invest in channels thatallow for bottom-up criticism to reach the surface
Policy recommendations
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Murakoze cyane
Interested in the paper?
To appear with African Studies Review
Contact me at an.ansoms@uclouvain.be