Advocacy through collective action

Since 2003, the Union of Agricultural Organisations (Syndicat des Organisations Agricoles, Réseau SOA) has brought together more than 30,000 farmers through 34 member organisations spread across 15 regions of Madagascar. The Réseau SOA works to inform, train and defend Malagasy farmers, while positioning them as key players in development and partners in public policies.

Strengthening untitled land rights is crucial for women and young people, who are often the most vulnerable in terms of formal access to land.

However, in June 2021, the Untitled Private Property (Propriété Privée Non Titrée, PPNT) Law No. 2021-016 was published, which required a land-use period of 15 years for obtaining land certification, causing considerable concern to family farmers in Madagascar.

Forest and Farm Facility activities

Since 2019, the Forest and Farm Facility (FFF) has provided continuous support to forest and farm producer organisations (FFPOs) in Madagascar to strengthen their advocacy and organisational capacities through technical and financial assistance. This enabled them to collectively and successfully lobby for an adjustment of the PPNT legislation in their favour in 2022.

Dedicated Réseau SOA youth groups joined forces with national platforms such as the Collective for the Defense of Malagasy Lands (Collectif pour la Défense des Terres Malgaches, Collectif TANY), the Citizens’ Platform for the Protection of the Commons (Rindran’ny Olom-pirenena Hiarovana ny Iaraha-manana, Mouvement ROHY), the Solidarity of Land Stakeholders Platform (Solidarité des Intervenants pour le Foncier, SIF) and the Climate Change Thematic Group (Groupe Thématique Changement Climatique, GT-CC).

These collaborations strengthened the coordinated and influential voice of farmers’ organisations, while also fostering synergies among FFPOs on land tenure security. The FFPOs included Réseau SOA, the Farmers Development Association (Fikambanana Fampivoarana Ny Tantsaha, FIFATA), the Coalition of Peasant Farmers of Madagascar (Coalition Paysanne de Madagascar, CPM), the Confederation of Malagasy Farmers (Fivondronamben’ny Tantsaha Malagasy, Fekritama) and Koloharena Mendrika.

Significance of impact

Together, these FFPOs closely monitored the evolution of the PPNT law and conducted in-depth analyses of the risks to smallholder farmers. This legal expertise allowed them to formulate precise criticisms and propose alternatives.

Réseau SOA and its members actively participated in consultation workshops, issued press releases, launched petitions and sent open letters to national authorities. Social media outreach raised awareness among farmers and a joint land advocacy roadmap was developed with the support of the International French Farmers and International Development (Agriculteurs Français et Développement International, Afdi).

A key issue of the 2021 PPNT law was the centralisation of land decision-making power, reducing the role of communal land offices. Advocacy intensified throughout 2022, leading to the decision of the High Constitutional Court in July 2022 and the adoption of Law No. 2022-013.

This revision reaffirmed the role of municipalities, strengthened the legal value of land certificates, and improved protection against land grabbing on untitled land, which constitutes the majority of agricultural land in Madagascar.

Conclusion

The success of this mobilisation to reform the PPNT law lies in the combination of technical expertise, grassroots mobilisation and strategic alliances.

All of these were strengthened through FFF support, which enhanced internal FFPO governance, built capacities for effective political lobbying and influence, and financed workshops and alliance-building efforts.

Further reading

News: Supporting young farmers through a farmer’s organization, FAO Regional Office for Africa (2021)