Collaborating with small scale farmers is a feasible option for investment according to a recent study developed by the working group “Alternative Tenure and Business Models for locally controlled sustainable land use and forest management”. Additionally the study demonstrates that land issues must be considered and solved in the context of existing arrangements within and between local stakeholders and communities.
Furthermore it has been demonstrated that an in-depth understanding of the local situation is critical for the development of funds and projects. Financing institutions could benefit from the vast knowledge and expertise that has been built up over the past decades in the context of development cooperation in developing countries.
The Working Group, composed by Tropenbos International, FMO – the Dutch Development Bank, HIVOS and KIT – the Royal Tropical Institute, carried out a scoping study into a number of projects and funds that are financing alternative and innovative land related activities with smallholder farmers and local communities, and scoping interviews were carried out with the Dutch Development Bank FMO, and two companies, Komaza in Kenya and Mali Biocarburant SA. The findings and important learning points have been summarized in an info brief.
Tropenbos International, FMO – the Dutch Development Bank, HIVOS and KIT – the Royal Tropical Institute – have established the informal working group “Alternative Tenure and Business Models for locally controlled sustainable land use and forest management” within the framework of the Dutch Land Governance Multi-Stakeholder Dialogue. The working group emanated from the notion that the financing sector still tends to focus on supporting largescale companies rather than small scale producers, taking as a starting point the assumption that ownership and use rights exist and have been legally obtained. There is a need to increase information, understanding, interest and practical guidance for financing institutions to promote and scale-up concrete, alternative agri-business/forestry and tenure models (based on co-investment and partnership) that strengthen locally controlled sustainable land and forest management and governance.
As a joint initiative of the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, companies, financial institutions, civil society organizations and knowledge institutes the Dutch Land Governance Multi-Stakeholder Dialogue (LG MSD) has been established since 2014. The LG MSD aims to contribute to the improvement of land governance through concrete actions; it particularly focuses on the realization and application of the agreed policy and guidelines. Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security (VGGT) endorsed by the Committee on Food Security in 2012.
