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Global governance meets local land tenure: international codes of conduct for responsible land investments in Uganda

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  • Dieterle, Carolin

Abstract

Throughout the last decade, the international donor community has developed a plethora of regulatory initiatives for responsible agricultural investments. It remains unclear how such guidelines are invoked in practice in investment cases, and whether their use can prevent conflict and protect local land rights, as promoted. Uncovering how international guidelines work necessitates an understanding of the formal-legal setting and underlying land tenure regimes that shape investment projects. In Uganda, these contexts vary from region to region and investments take place on land held under various tenure regimes, including private, state-owned, and customary land. Based on 8 months of fieldwork in Uganda, I compare three cases of large-scale land investments in different settings and argue that variation in the underlying land tenure systems determines the variation, uneven applicability and effectiveness of global governance mechanisms.

Suggested Citation

  • Dieterle, Carolin, 2022. "Global governance meets local land tenure: international codes of conduct for responsible land investments in Uganda," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 111962, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    • Handle: RePEc:ehl:lserod:111962
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    File URL: https://researchonline.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/111962/
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Peters, Pauline E., 2009. "Challenges in Land Tenure and Land Reform in Africa: Anthropological Contributions," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 37(8), pages 1317-1325, August.
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    4. Ethan B. Kapstein, 2018. "Governing the Global Land Grab," Global Policy, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 9(2), pages 173-183, May.
    5. Jean‐Philippe Platteau, 1996. "The Evolutionary Theory of Land Rights as Applied to Sub‐Saharan Africa: A Critical Assessment," Development and Change, International Institute of Social Studies, vol. 27(1), pages 29-86, January.
    6. Boone, Catherine, 2015. "Land tenure regimes and state structure in rural Africa:implications for the forms of resistance to large-scale land acquisitions by outsiders," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 62288, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    7. Tsegaye Moreda, 2017. "Large-scale land acquisitions, state authority and indigenous local communities: insights from Ethiopia," Third World Quarterly, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 38(3), pages 698-716, March.
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    Cited by:

    1. Juliet Katusiime & Brigitta Schütt, 2023. "Towards Legislation Responsive to Integrated Watershed Management Approaches and Land Tenure," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(3), pages 1-27, January.
    2. Eke, Surulola & Grant, J. Andrew & Mayanja, Evelyn & Andrews, Nathan, 2025. "Transnational capital and the scramble for land and profit: financialization, agrarian development, and resource conflict in Africa," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 194(C).

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    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • R14 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - Land Use Patterns
    • J01 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - General - - - Labor Economics: General

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