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AFRICA AND THE DIASPORA => General African News => Topic started by: News on June 09, 2011, 04:31:16 PM



Title: US universities in Africa 'land grab'
Post by: News on June 09, 2011, 04:31:16 PM
Institutions including Harvard and Vanderbilt reportedly use hedge funds to buy land in deals that may force farmers out

By John Vidal and Claire Provost
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 8 June 2011

   
Harvard and other major American universities are working through British hedge funds and European financial speculators to buy or lease vast areas of African farmland in deals, some of which may force many thousands of people off their land, according to a new study.

Researchers say foreign investors are profiting from "land grabs" that often fail to deliver the promised benefits of jobs and economic development, and can lead to environmental and social problems in the poorest countries in the world.

Full Article... (http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jun/08/us-universities-africa-land-grab)