IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jlands/v14y2025i2p276-d1579445.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Land Governance in French-Speaking Africa: Comparative Analysis of Legal and Institutional Reforms for Sustainable Management of Community Lands

Author

Listed:
  • Idiatou Bah

    (Faculty of Forestry, Geography and Geomatics, Laval University, Quebec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada)

  • Kossivi Fabrice Dossa

    (Faculty of Forestry, Geography and Geomatics, Laval University, Quebec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada)

Abstract

In July 2009, African leaders adopted the Declaration on Land Issues in Africa, reaffirming the commitment of African Union member states to effective land management. The declaration emphasizes the protection of land rights for all, with particular attention to women and marginalized groups. Land governance in Africa, which spans various aspects of society, remains a critical issue and is often a source of conflict and instability across the continent. This study examines the legal and institutional reforms of land governance in Francophone Africa (Benin, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Mali, and Senegal), analyzing their objectives, outcomes, and the challenges associated with their implementation. In addition, this study highlights examples of both effective and ineffective reform implementations based on case studies from countries with notable successes (Ethiopia, Rwanda, Mauritius, Ghana, and Madagascar) and failures (South Africa and Zimbabwe). Finally, this study offers recommendations for improving sustainable land management while considering social, economic, political, and environmental dimensions. The methodology employed is based exclusively on a systematic review guided by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Protocols (PRISMA-P) approach, applied to the ROSES (Reporting Standards for Systematic Evidence Syntheses) protocol. This approach facilitated the selection of 57 relevant documents retrieved from databases such as Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed, and Google Scholar. Land governance in Francophone Africa varies significantly from country to country and cannot be comprehensively addressed in a study of this scope. Nevertheless, this research study identifies common challenges, opportunities, and measures that could inspire reflection in other countries. In several cases, administrative and customary authorities play central roles in land management. However, their overlapping responsibilities, often marked by corruption, extend procedures and exacerbate local conflicts.

Suggested Citation

  • Idiatou Bah & Kossivi Fabrice Dossa, 2025. "Land Governance in French-Speaking Africa: Comparative Analysis of Legal and Institutional Reforms for Sustainable Management of Community Lands," Land, MDPI, vol. 14(2), pages 1-30, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jlands:v:14:y:2025:i:2:p:276-:d:1579445
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/14/2/276/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/14/2/276/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Chris D. Arnot & Martin K. Luckert & Peter C. Boxall, 2011. "What Is Tenure Security? Conceptual Implications for Empirical Analysis," Land Economics, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 87(2), pages 297-311.
    2. repec:dau:papers:123456789/4573 is not listed on IDEAS
    3. Jean-Louis Combes & Pascale Combes-Motel & Sonia Schwartz, 2016. "Un survol de la théorie des biens communs," Revue d’économie du développement, De Boeck Université, vol. 24(3), pages 55-83.
    4. Jongwook Kim & Joseph T. Mahoney, 2002. "Resource-based and property rights perspectives on value creation: the case of oil field unitization," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 23(4-5), pages 225-245.
    5. Klaus Deininger, 2003. "Land Policies for Growth and Poverty Reduction," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 15125, April.
    6. Jean-Pierre Cling & Mireille Razafindrakoto & François Roubaud, 2002. "La Banque mondiale et la lutte contre la pauvreté : tout changer pour que tout reste pareil ?," Working Papers DT/2002/09, DIAL (Développement, Institutions et Mondialisation).
    7. Abdourahmane Ndiaye, 2011. "La réforme des régimes fonciers au Sénégal : condition de l'éradication de la pauvreté rurale et de la souveraineté alimentaire," Working Papers halshs-00653556, HAL.
    8. Mhlangabezi Slayi & Leocadia Zhou & Kgabo Humphrey Thamaga & Patrick Nyambo, 2024. "The Role of Social Inclusion in Restoring Communal Rangelands in Southern Africa: A Systematic Review of Approaches, Challenges, and Outcomes," Land, MDPI, vol. 13(9), pages 1-25, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Meinzen-Dick, Ruth S. & Quisumbing, Agnes R. & Theis, Sophie & Doss, Cheryl R., 2017. "Women’s land rights as a pathway to poverty reduction: A framework and review of available evidence," IFPRI discussion papers 1663, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    2. Ruth Hall & Donna Hornby & Steven Lawry & Aaron Leopold & Farai Mtero & Cyrus Samii, 2012. "PROTOCOL: The Impact of Land Property Rights Interventions on Agricultural Productivity in Developing Countries: A Systematic Review," Campbell Systematic Reviews, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 8(1), pages 1-48.
    3. Klümper, Frederike & Theesfeld, Insa & Herzfeld, Thomas, 2018. "Discrepancies between paper and practice in policy implementation: Tajikistan’s property rights and customary claims to land and water," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 75, pages 327-339.
    4. Walker, Kendra L., 2021. "Effect of land tenure on forest cover and the paradox of private titling in Panama," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 109(C).
    5. Emmanuel Olatunbosun Benjamin, 2020. "Smallholder Agricultural Investment and Productivity under Contract Farming and Customary Tenure System: A Malawian Perspective," Land, MDPI, vol. 9(8), pages 1-17, August.
    6. Addiswork Tilahun Teklemariam & Logan Cochrane, 2021. "The Rush to the Peripheries: Land Rights and Tenure Security in Peri-Urban Ethiopia," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(2), pages 1-20, February.
    7. Valkonen, Anni, 2021. "Examining sources of land tenure (in)security. A focus on authority relations, state politics, social dynamics and belonging," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).
    8. Meinzen-Dick, Ruth & Quisumbing, Agnes & Doss, Cheryl & Theis, Sophie, 2019. "Women's land rights as a pathway to poverty reduction: Framework and review of available evidence," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 172(C), pages 72-82.
    9. Walter Dachaga & Walter Timo de Vries, 2021. "Land Tenure Security and Health Nexus: A Conceptual Framework for Navigating the Connections between Land Tenure Security and Health," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(3), pages 1-21, March.
    10. Muna Shifa & Murray Leibbrandt & Martin Wittenberg, 2015. "Does tenure insecurity explain the variations in land-related investment decisions in rural Ethiopia?," SALDRU Working Papers 150, Southern Africa Labour and Development Research Unit, University of Cape Town.
    11. Stéphane Korsaga, 2018. "Land Tenure Security, Land-Related Investments and Agricultural Performance in Sub-Saharan Africa: Efficiency or Equity? A Microeconomic Analysis Applied to the Case of Burkina Faso," Working Papers halshs-01699118, HAL.
    12. Shohei Nakamura, 2014. "Impact of slum formalization on self-help housing construction: A case of slum notification in India," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 51(16), pages 3420-3444, December.
    13. Rabah Arezki & Klaus Deininger & Harris Selod, 2015. "What Drives the Global "Land Rush"?," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 29(2), pages 207-233.
    14. Grimm, Michael & Klasen, Stephan, 2007. "Geography vs. Institutions at the Village Level," Proceedings of the German Development Economics Conference, Göttingen 2007 9, Verein für Socialpolitik, Research Committee Development Economics.
    15. Foley-Fisher, Nathan & McLaughlin, Eoin, 2016. "Capitalising on the Irish land question: land reform and state banking in Ireland, 1891–1938," Financial History Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 23(1), pages 71-109, April.
    16. Kim, Jongwook & Mahoney, Joseph T., 2008. "A Strategic Theory of the Firm as a Nexus of Incomplete Contracts: A Property Rights Approach," Working Papers 08-0108, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, College of Business.
    17. Lenyeletse V. Basupi & Claire H. Quinn & Andrew J. Dougill, 2017. "Pastoralism and Land Tenure Transformation in Sub-Saharan Africa: Conflicting Policies and Priorities in Ngamiland, Botswana," Land, MDPI, vol. 6(4), pages 1-17, December.
    18. Mhlangabezi Slayi & Ishmael Festus Jaja, 2024. "Integrating Mixed Livestock Systems to Optimize Forage Utilization and Modify Woody Species Composition in Semi-Arid Communal Rangelands," Land, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-24, November.
    19. Thomas Vendryes, 2014. "Peasants Against Private Property Rights: A Review Of The Literature," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(5), pages 971-995, December.
    20. Leakey, Roger & Kranjac-Berisavljevic, Gordana & Caron, Patrick & Craufurd, Peter & Martin, Adrienne M. & McDonald, Andy & Abedini, Walter & Afiff, Suraya & Bakurin, Ndey & Bass, Steve & Hilbeck, Ange, 2009. "Impacts of AKST on development and sustainability goals," Book Chapters,, International Water Management Institute.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jlands:v:14:y:2025:i:2:p:276-:d:1579445. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.