Stories: LAND GRABBING IN SENEGAL: LandgrabbingSenegal_photoLukaDakskobler-026

A villager shows the land near the village of Colobane, Senegal, that has been, presumed illegally, acquired by the Italian company African National Oil Corporation (ANOC) to grow Jatropha plants for biofuels, January 10, 2014. In Senegal, traditional land, including majority of the land in the region of Kaolac, is not owned by the individual or a family, but is a property of local community. Therefore, anybody who wants to legally sell or buy the land needs the approval of the local Council. At this moment, there is no evidence that ANOC gained approval from the Council for their land deals, which means that the legality of their ownership over the land is seriously questioned. Furthermore, the land deals have been done in a very non-transparent manner with villagers signing blank or uncompleted papers as their agreement for selling the land. None of the villagers received a copy of the document they signed.

A villager shows the land near the village of Colobane, Senegal, that has been, presumed illegally, acquired by the Italian company African National Oil Corporation (ANOC) to grow Jatropha plants for biofuels, January 10, 2014. In Senegal, traditional land, including majority of the land in the region of Kaolac, is not owned by the individual or a family, but is a property of local community. Therefore, anybody who wants to legally sell or buy the land needs the approval of the local Council. At this moment, there is no evidence that ANOC gained approval from the Council for their land deals, which means that the legality of their ownership over the land is seriously questioned. Furthermore, the land deals have been done in a very non-transparent manner with villagers signing blank or uncompleted papers as their agreement for selling the land. None of the villagers received a copy of the document they signed.