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Back | Programme Area: Environment, Sustainable Development and Social Change

Custodians of the Commons: Pastoral Land Tenure in East and West Africa



Edited volume by Charles R. Lane and published in association with Earthscan and IIED.

This book documents the importance of pastoralism as a way of life for over 25 million people in Africa. However, population increases, alienation of land, restrictions on migratory movements and a decline in rainfall have all made traditional forms of pastoralism difficult to sustain. The authors argue that lack of understanding and support for pastoralism has had adverse impacts on economic growth, social development, environmental sustainability and human rights; pastoralists are suffering disproportionately in Africa, with many groups experiencing declining living standards and increased poverty, insecurity and loss of land. The book's conributors call for a better understanding of ecological conditions in pastoralist areas, the needs of pastoralists to be taken into account when legal land tenure changes are formulated, and that attention be paid to establishing mechanisms for conflict resolution in pastoralist areas where traditional social relations have been disrupted.
  • Publication and ordering details
  • Pub. Date: 1 Jan 1998
    Pub. Place: London
    ISBN: 1 85383 473 4
    Type: Paperback
    From: Earthscan