Promised jobs that never materialised : forestry investments in Niassa Province, Mozambique - benefits and challenges

Abstract

The development of Niassa Province is influenced by historical, cultural, social, economic and political factors. Traditionally, land has not been considered as a commodity by the Mozambican communities, but as the basis for life, regulated through historical lineages and a flexible customary land tenure system. The main development approach chosen by the Mozambican Government to achieve economic growth and reduce poverty is Foreign Direct Investments (FDI), expecting positive development outcomes in terms of investment and job creation. The Governments of Norway and Sweden have played a key-­‐role in the development of public-­‐private partnerships in Niassa. Choosing a mixed methods research approach, this thesis obtained the views and analysed the roles of local communities, the investors, government officials and NGOs regarding the effects of large-­‐scale forestry in Niassa related to the investments by Green Resources (GRAS) and the Global Solidarity Forest Fund (GSFF), and their two companies Niassa Green Resources (NGR) and Chikweti Forests of Niassa. My fieldwork in Niassa during September 2011 and June and August 2014 found that development outcomes had not been delivered as promised and expected, neither in terms of job creation, nor investments in the local communities. Local communities’ perceptions were divided: those who felt they benefitted, had benefitted or hoped to benefit from the investments, and the peasant farmers who had experienced losses or feared that future generations would have to struggle with worsened living conditions due to accumulation by dispossession (Harvey 2003). A majority of interviewees in the household survey reported an unchanged or deteriorated food situation. Even so, a wider majority of informants still felt they would advice other communities to lease out their land, hoping that FDI would be their chance to escape poverty. If the forest investments are to provide positive development outcomes in the future, there is a need to change strategy away from a neo-­‐liberal, capitalisistic interventions towards more human-­‐ and ecology-­‐centred approches. Much larger areas than today are expected to be acquired in the future, so there is a strong need for better planning and monitoring of investments, focusing on their development outcomes. Still, I question the long-­‐term sustainability of the current transformation process in Nissa.