Does the inclusion of land rights in the global development agenda bear the potential to promote the secure and fair distribution of land rights? Yes, our author believes – provided that the land-rights community does not rest on...[more]
On the 11th May 2012, the Committee on World Food Security of the United Nations adopted the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests (VGGT). Rural 21 asked Roman Herre of the...[more]
There are numerous proposals regarding the best way to protect the environment and ecosystems. Instead of inventing the wheel anew, our Nigerian author advocates reflecting on the cultural and religious concepts of his ancestors.[more]
There are many reasons why young people in Africa are turning their backs on agriculture. Our author is convinced that here, access to technology, in particular tractors, is the crucial aspect.[more]
China’s engagement in Africa is viewed negatively by many. However, it does have
numerous benefits for the rural population, our author maintains.[more]
The previous issue of Rural 21 addressed the concept of nutrition-sensitive agriculture, which our author believes is a valuable and worthwhile approach – only that it is often difficult to put into practice.
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Establishing a water goal in its own right in the SDGs is an important step in the right direction. However, global efforts need to be stepped up if the human right to water and sanitation is to become a reality and a global...[more]
Interventions to fight hidden hunger particularly eclipse poor people living in remote rural areas – and hence many who are involved in agriculture. Biofortified crops can help bridge this gap, our author maintains.[more]
Money spent on health systems of partner countries in the context of international
co-operation runs into the billions. Why have the health systems nevertheless failed so miserably in the case of Ebola?[more]
Given the magnitude of the problem, spending on research into poverty-related and neglected tropical diseases is by far not sufficient. Are experiences with the recent Ebola epidemic and the resolutions adopted by this year’s G7...[more]
During the last few years, the donor community has increased its efforts to reduce the large amounts of fish lost in the distribution chain in artisanal fishery, an endeavour that ought to be welcomed in principle. However,...[more]
Adaptation to climate change in agriculture is a hot topic, but what exactly does it mean? Our authors suggest to take a step back before embarking on adaptation work in rural development, and to carefully clarify the goals of...[more]
Meant well doesn’t always mean done well. The Sustainable Development Goals are all set to undermine themselves, Stephan Klasen maintains. The worst aspect is that people, who really ought to be at the focus, threaten to fall by...[more]
Is it right to attach financial values to nature and to incorporate that valuation into the post-2015 agenda? Will such valuation help to protect species diversity and ecosystems? Or does it not rather harbour the risk that we...[more]
Rural women’s easy and reliable access to micro-credit is a sine qua non for their economic empowerment. In the context of International Women’s Day on the 8th March 2015, Amrit Patel highlights success factors and shortcomings...[more]
If the current trend in global meat demand persists, meat production will need to rise from 300 million tons today to 470 million tons by 2050. Climate and our natural resources would lose out, our author warns.
In contrast,...[more]
Nowadays it is hard to imagine European livestock production without soya-based feed. But this trend has had a massive impact on rural areas in the global South – the bulk of the soya fed to livestock in Europe is imported from...[more]
This year’s theme for World Food Day – which is observed every year on October 16th in more than 150 countries – is “Sustainable Food Systems for Food Security and Nutrition”. Our author Amrit Patel looks at the measures needed...[more]
With its abundance of natural resources, Africa appears to be predestined for a type of economy that centres on the use of bio-based resources. However, before a comprehensive approach can be applied, a large number of framework...[more]
The bioeconomy above all focuses on technological innovation to make better use of available resources. In principle, this is not a bad idea, says Barbara Unmüßig. The question though is for the benefit of whom and at whose...[more]
To alleviate poverty and hunger in rural areas is a core political objective of the German Federal Ministry for Economic co-operation and Development (BMZ). A key element of this task is the promotion of the farming and food...[more]
Close ties between development policy and agribusiness bear a lot of risks – both for the environment and for low-income small farmers, maintains Marita Wiggerthale from Oxfam Germany.[more]
Early in June 2014, the Micronutrient Forum Global Conference, took place in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Here, Marie Ruel, Director of the Poverty, Health and Nutrition division at the International Food Policy Research Institute...[more]
Is there good reason to make family farms a focus of global attention for a year? Or is it not rather reckless to advocate a concept while completely disregarding the fact that the necessary conditions are often not in place? A...[more]
Devastation brought by Typhoon Haiyan on the Philippine island of Leyte in November 2013 need not have assumed such awesome proportions if the island’s original natural environment had not been destroyed by deforestation and...[more]
Despite comprehensive government food subsidies, endemic hunger continues to afflict a large proportion of the Indian population. Amrit Pratel describes what measures have to be taken to raise productivity in agriculture and make...[more]
Many a dogma produced by agricultural policies over the past decades has proved disastrous for African agriculture. Ms Rhoda Peace Tumusiime, Commissioner of Rural Economy and Agriculture of the African Union (AU), looks at...[more]
Initially hailed a huge success, Malawi’s effort to boost agriculture with fertiliser subsidies appears to have met with failure. The author has a look at what went wrong, arguing that developments must be assessed against the...[more]
Why do you care about women’s land rights? Isn’t it enough for the household to have land?“ This question is a common refrain Agnes Quisumbing, researcher at the International Food Policy Research Institute, IFPRI, hears from...[more]
