Thursday, June 09, 2011

US Universities in Africa 'Land Grab'

 Guardian UK
 June 8, 2011

Harvard and other major American universities are working through British hedge funds and European financial speculators to buy or lease vast areas of African farmland in deals, some of which may force many thousands of people off their land, according to a new study.

Researchers say foreign investors are profiting from "land grabs" that often fail to deliver the promised benefits of jobs and economic development, and can lead to environmental and social problems in the poorest countries in the world.

The new report on land acquisitions in seven African countries suggests that Harvard, Vanderbilt and many other US colleges with large endowment funds have invested heavily in African land in the past few years. Much of the money is said to be channelled through London-based Emergent asset management, which runs one of Africa's largest land acquisition funds, run by former JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs currency dealers.

Researchers at the California-based Oakland Institute think that Emergent's clients in the US may have invested up to $500m in some of the most fertile land in the expectation of making 25% returns.

Read the rest here.

Comment: P. I'll take those two or twelve aspirin now with a dose of anesthesia please.  Oh you could just empty the bottle into my forehead pretty please!!!

3 comments:

The Brotha's Corner said...

Brotha, these crooks are doing the same thing locally. It happened with the City Colleges of Chicago trying to "land-grab" The Harold Washington Culture Center. I'm not surprised at all!!!

Ridwan said...

Hey there my Brotha:

Wow you are catching me up to speed.

What the hell hey?

I know that US and Chinese companies are buying out or leasing large tracts of land on the continent for growing biofuels (crops).

This thing is deeper and more crooked than we know.

What we coming too???

Thanks for you comment. Great blog by the way.

Onward! D.,
ridwan

The Brotha's Corner said...

Yes sir, it sure is! Check this article out when you have time. These corporate thugs are vicious!!! Thnx for the love brotha!

http://www.suntimes.com/5852204-417/louis-farrakhan-joins-fight-over-harold-washington-cultural-center.html