IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/wdevel/v108y2018icp103-114.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Land-grabbing, land-use transformation and social differentiation: Deconstructing “small-scale” in Ghana's recent gold rush

Author

Listed:
  • Hausermann, Heidi
  • Ferring, David
  • Atosona, Bernadette
  • Mentz, Graciela
  • Amankwah, Richard
  • Chang, Augustus
  • Hartfield, Kyle
  • Effah, Emmanuel
  • Asuamah, Grace Yeboah
  • Mansell, Coryanne
  • Sastri, Natasha

Abstract

Gold prices hit historic highs following the 2008 financial crisis, catalyzing an international gold rush. Along Ghana's Offin River, recent mining activities have irreversibly transformed the landscape and lives of local people. Cocoa farms, subsistence crops, forest, and other land-uses have been cleared, with significant implications for livelihoods and food security. Rivers and streams were rerouted into mining sites to wash sediment, impacting hydrology, including water quality. Abandoned pits now stretch for kilometers and pose everyday hazards to community members. While minerals law reserves “small-scale” mining as a right for Ghanaian citizens, both foreigners and Ghanaians control and mine concessions, reflecting complicated land-grabbing processes in the sector. Combining geospatial, ethnographic and quantitative methodological approaches with long-term international collaboration, this article examines the spatial and socio-environmental dimensions of “small-scale” gold mining. We employed remote sensing techniques, underutilized in land-grabbing research, to assess mining-mediated land-use changes along a portion of the Offin River. The total extent of mining increased 2,772.6 percent to 998.23 hectares between 2008 and 2013; “mine water” increased by 13,000 percent to cover 200 hectares. We argue these extensive land-use conversions are enabled through Ghana's contradictory and gendered land tenure systems. While scholars often characterize land deals as occurring through theft and dispossession, we found miners' access land through ad hoc negotiations before mining, compensation following crop destruction and outright dispossession. We detail the diverse actors and practices mediating informal land markets, and the uneven implications for people positioned within social and structural hierarchies, particularly women and “strangers.” Our research troubles “small-scale” categorizations and discursive representations of mining, and urges land-grabbing researchers to examine prolific smaller deals alongside transactions involving thousands of hectares.

Suggested Citation

  • Hausermann, Heidi & Ferring, David & Atosona, Bernadette & Mentz, Graciela & Amankwah, Richard & Chang, Augustus & Hartfield, Kyle & Effah, Emmanuel & Asuamah, Grace Yeboah & Mansell, Coryanne & Sastr, 2018. "Land-grabbing, land-use transformation and social differentiation: Deconstructing “small-scale” in Ghana's recent gold rush," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 108(C), pages 103-114.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:wdevel:v:108:y:2018:i:c:p:103-114
    DOI: 10.1016/j.worlddev.2018.03.014
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0305750X18300962
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.worlddev.2018.03.014?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Aryee, Benjamin N. A., 2001. "Ghana's mining sector: its contribution to the national economy," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 27(2), pages 61-75, June.
    2. Nikita Sud, 2017. "State, scale and networks in the liberalisation of India’s land," Environment and Planning C, , vol. 35(1), pages 76-93, February.
    3. Quisumbing, Agnes R & Payongayong, Ellen & Aidoo, J B & Otsuka, Keijiro, 2001. "Women's Land Rights in the Transition to Individualized Ownership: Implications for Tree-Resource Management in Western Ghana," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 50(1), pages 157-181, October.
    4. Berry, Sara, 1997. "Tomatoes, land and hearsay: Property and history in asante in the time of structural adjustment," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 25(8), pages 1225-1241, August.
    5. Lambrecht, Isabel Brigitte, 2016. "“As a Husband I Will Love, Lead, and Provide.” Gendered Access to Land in Ghana," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 188-200.
    6. Derek Hall, 2013. "Primitive Accumulation, Accumulation by Dispossession and the Global Land Grab," Third World Quarterly, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 34(9), pages 1582-1604, October.
    7. Zenia Kish & Madeleine Fairbairn, 2018. "Investing for profit, investing for impact: Moral performances in agricultural investment projects," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 50(3), pages 569-588, May.
    8. Ruth Hall, 2011. "Land grabbing in Southern Africa: the many faces of the investor rush," Review of African Political Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 38(128), pages 193-214, June.
    9. Osama J. A. R. Abu Shair, 1997. "Privatization and Development," Palgrave Macmillan Books, Palgrave Macmillan, number 978-1-349-25374-6.
    10. Nyame, Frank K. & Blocher, Joseph, 2010. "Influence of land tenure practices on artisanal mining activity in Ghana," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 35(1), pages 47-53, March.
    11. Doss, Cheryl R., 2002. "Men's Crops? Women's Crops? The Gender Patterns of Cropping in Ghana," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 30(11), pages 1987-2000, November.
    12. Carr, Edward R., 2008. "Men's Crops and Women's Crops: The Importance of Gender to the Understanding of Agricultural and Development Outcomes in Ghana's Central Region," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 36(5), pages 900-915, May.
    13. Amankwah, R.K. & Anim-Sackey, C., 2003. "Strategies for sustainable development of the small-scale gold and diamond mining industry of Ghana," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 29(3-4), pages 131-138.
    14. Wendy Wolford & Saturnino M. Borras Jr. & Ruth Hall & Ian Scoones & Ben White & Madeleine Fairbairn, 2013. "Indirect Dispossession: Domestic Power Imbalances and Foreign Access to Land in Mozambique," Development and Change, International Institute of Social Studies, vol. 44(2), pages 335-356, March.
    15. Carmen Deere & Abena Oduro & Hema Swaminathan & Cheryl Doss, 2013. "Property rights and the gender distribution of wealth in Ecuador, Ghana and India," The Journal of Economic Inequality, Springer;Society for the Study of Economic Inequality, vol. 11(2), pages 249-265, June.
    16. Catherine Boone & Dennis Kwame Duku, 2012. "Ethnic Land Rights in Western Ghana: Landlord–Stranger Relations in the Democratic Era," Development and Change, International Institute of Social Studies, vol. 43(3), pages 671-693, May.
    17. Lastarria-Cornhiel, Susana, 1997. "Impact of privatization on gender and property rights in Africa," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 25(8), pages 1317-1333, August.
    18. Japhy Wilson, 2016. "The Village that Turned to Gold: A Parable of Philanthrocapitalism," Development and Change, International Institute of Social Studies, vol. 47(1), pages 3-28, January.
    19. Dzodzi Tsikata & Joseph Awetori Yaro, 2014. "When a Good Business Model is Not Enough: Land Transactions and Gendered Livelihood Prospects in Rural Ghana," Feminist Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 20(1), pages 202-226, January.
    20. Berry, Sara, 2009. "Building for the Future? Investment, Land Reform and the Contingencies of Ownership in Contemporary Ghana," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 37(8), pages 1370-1378, August.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Angelo Antoci & Paolo Russu & Elisa Ticci, 2019. "Mining and Local Economies: Dilemma between Environmental Protection and Job Opportunities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(22), pages 1-21, November.
    2. Asaaga, Festus A. & Hirons, Mark A. & Malhi, Yadvinder, 2020. "Questioning the link between tenure security and sustainable land management in cocoa landscapes in Ghana," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 130(C).
    3. Ali, Daniel Ayalew & Deininger, Klaus, 2022. "Institutional determinants of large land-based investments’ performance in Zambia: Does title enhance productivity and structural transformation?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 157(C).
    4. Ruxandra Malina Petrescu-Mag & Hamid Rastegari Kopaei & Dacinia Crina Petrescu, 2021. "What Drives Landowners to Resist Selling Their Land? Insights from Ethical Capitalism and Landowners’ Perceptions," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(3), pages 1-21, March.
    5. Devine, Jennifer A. & Wrathall, David & Aguilar-González, Bernardo & Benessaiah, Karina & Tellman, Beth & Ghaffari, Zahra & Ponstingel, Daria, 2021. "Narco-degradation: Cocaine trafficking’s environmental impacts in Central America’s protected areas," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 144(C).
    6. Obodai, Jacob & Bhagwat, Shonil & Mohan, Giles, 2024. "The interface of environment and human wellbeing: Exploring the impacts of gold mining on food security in Ghana," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    7. James Boafo & Sebastian Angzoorokuu Paalo & Senyo Dotsey, 2019. "Illicit Chinese Small-Scale Mining in Ghana: Beyond Institutional Weakness?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(21), pages 1-18, October.
    8. Arthur-Holmes, Francis & Ofosu, George, 2024. "Rethinking state-led formalisation of artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM): Towards mining licence categorisation, women empowerment and environmental sustainability," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 93(C).
    9. Adu-Baffour, Ferdinand & Daum, Thomas & Birner, Regina, 2021. "Governance challenges of small-scale gold mining in Ghana: Insights from a process net-map study," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    10. Nyantakyi-Frimpong, Hanson, 2020. "What lies beneath: Climate change, land expropriation, and zaï agroecological innovations by smallholder farmers in Northern Ghana," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 92(C).
    11. Adranyi, Enoch & Stringer, Lindsay C. & Altink, Henrice, 2024. "Artisanal and small-scale gold mining governance and cross-sectoral policy coherence in Ghana," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 96(C).
    12. García-Morán, Ana & Yates, Julian S., 2022. "In between rights and power: Women’s land rights and the gendered politics of land ownership, use, and management in Mexican ejidos," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 152(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Isabel Lambrecht & Monica Schuster & Sarah Asare Samwini & Laura Pelleriaux, 2018. "Changing gender roles in agriculture? Evidence from 20 years of data in Ghana," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 49(6), pages 691-710, November.
    2. Lambrecht, Isabel Brigitte, 2016. "“As a Husband I Will Love, Lead, and Provide.” Gendered Access to Land in Ghana," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 188-200.
    3. Lambrecht, Isabel, 2016. "“As a husband I will love, lead, and provide:†Gendered access to land in Ghana:," IFPRI discussion papers 1514, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    4. Asaaga, Festus A. & Hirons, Mark A. & Malhi, Yadvinder, 2020. "Questioning the link between tenure security and sustainable land management in cocoa landscapes in Ghana," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 130(C).
    5. La Ferrara, Eliana, 2007. "Descent rules and strategic transfers. Evidence from matrilineal groups in Ghana," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 83(2), pages 280-301, July.
    6. Meinzen-Dick, R., 2012. "Putting gender on the map: methods for mapping gendered farm management systems in Sub-Saharan Africa," IWMI Working Papers H045510, International Water Management Institute.
    7. Gwendoline Promsopha, 2018. "Risk†Coping, Land Tenure And Land Markets: An Overview Of The Literature," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(1), pages 176-193, February.
    8. Ghebru, Hosaena & Khan, Huma & Lambrecht, Isabel, 2016. "Perceived land tenure security and rural transformation: Empirical evidence from Ghana:," IFPRI discussion papers 1545, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    9. Bouquet, Emmanuelle, 2009. "State-Led Land Reform and Local Institutional Change: Land Titles, Land Markets and Tenure Security in Mexican Communities," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 37(8), pages 1390-1399, August.
    10. Klaus Deininger & Songqing Jin, 2008. "Land Sales and Rental Markets in Transition: Evidence from Rural Vietnam," Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Department of Economics, University of Oxford, vol. 70(1), pages 67-101, February.
    11. Peterman, Amber & Behrman, Julia & Quisumbing, Agnes, 2010. "A review of empirical evidence on gender differences in nonland agricultural inputs, technology, and services in developing countries," IFPRI discussion papers 975, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    12. Yokying, Phanwin & Lambrecht, Isabel, 2020. "Landownership and the gender gap in agriculture: Insights from northern Ghana," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 99(C).
    13. Meinzen-Dick, Ruth Suseela & Quisumbing, Agnes R. & Doss, Cheryl R. & Theis, Sophie, 2017. "Women’s land rights as a pathway to poverty reduction: A framework and review of available evidence," IFPRI discussion papers 1663, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    14. Quisumbing, Agnes R. & Pandolfelli, Lauren, 2010. "Promising Approaches to Address the Needs of Poor Female Farmers: Resources, Constraints, and Interventions," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 38(4), pages 581-592, April.
    15. Campus, Daniela, 2017. "Gender differentials in agricultural productivity: an empirical evidence from Uganda," 2017 Sixth AIEAA Conference, June 15-16, Piacenza, Italy 261259, Italian Association of Agricultural and Applied Economics (AIEAA).
    16. Meinzen-Dick, Ruth & Quisumbing, Agnes & Behrman, Julia & Biermayr-Jenzano, Patricia & Wilde, Vicki & Noordeloos, Marco & Ragasa, Catherine & Beintema, Nienke, 2010. "Engendering agricultural research," IFPRI discussion papers 973, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    17. Quisumbing, Agnes R. & Otsuka, Keijiro, 2001. "Land Inheritance and Schooling in Matrilineal Societies: Evidence from Sumatra," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 29(12), pages 2093-2110, December.
    18. Doss, Cheryl R., 2001. "Designing Agricultural Technology for African Women Farmers: Lessons from 25 Years of Experience," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 29(12), pages 2075-2092, December.
    19. Quisumbing, Agnes R. & Payongayong, Ellen M. & Otsuka, Keijiro, 2004. "Are wealth transfers biased against girls?," FCND discussion papers 186, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    20. Carmen Diana Deere & Cheryl Doss, 2006. "The Gender Asset Gap: What Do We Know And Why Does It Matter?," Feminist Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 12(1-2), pages 1-50.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:wdevel:v:108:y:2018:i:c:p:103-114. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/worlddev .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.