Is the World Bank Destroying Traditional Farming by Enabling Corporate Land Grabs?

Apr 02, 2014
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Source: Humanitarian News

April 2, 2014

A new report from an independent policy think tank raises questions about the harmful effects on smallholders and traditional farmers by the World Bank’s country ranking system, which is claimed to lead to corporate land grabs, which further impoverishes the poor.

“The Bank’s “Doing Business” rankings, which score countries according to how Washington officials perceive the “ease of doing business” there, have caused many developing-country leaders to deregulate their economies in hopes of attracting foreign investment. But what the World Bank considers beneficial for foreign business is very often the exact opposite for existing farmers and herders.

In the agricultural sector, the rankings encourage governments to commoditize their land — and to sell or lease it to foreign investors, regardless of environmental or social impact. Smallholder farmers, pastoralists, and the[…]

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