Search

The Senegalese government considers the current land legislation to be an obstacle to the development of agribusiness. However, many agribusiness projects have been set up in the Senegal River Delta, particularly since the 2000s. Based on a detailed analysis of 15 cases, the article shows that, beyond their diversity, their access to land follows three main paths, depending on the institution that grants the land. In Senegal, the communes are the main land allocation bodies and the majority of investors prefer local negotiation to the allocation of land by the State. Opening the black box of actual practices and concrete 'land paths' sheds light on the debate on the regulation of access to irrigated land in Senegal and, more broadly, on the ways that agribusiness uses for negotiating and legalizing this access, as well as on the role of the legal and institutional framework and local authorities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]