ABSTRACT
People's efforts to secure land and water rights in Africa follow many different paths, and the literature on African land tenure documents varied and shifting strategies. The centrality of land, water and other natural resources in peoples' livelihoods has also meant that such resources have enjoyed the keen attention of the state - whether colonial or independent, central or local. Rights to land and other natural resources not only determine control over economic sources of livelihood but, for states and governments, have also meant political control over African populations [Berry, 1993; Chanock, 1985; Mamdani, 1996; Merry, 1986; Moore, 1986]. Moreover, in many African communities, land is charged with historical and contextual signifiers, and the symbols by which people and government deal with land are ripe with meaning and values. Therefore, whenever people or institutions deal with land issues many agendas are affected at the same time, resulting in social and political friction and negotiation [Benjaminsen and Lund, 2001; Juul and Lund, 2002]. Access to land still remains a central preoccupation in most African societies, and while issues such as 'globalisation' and 'hegemonic discourses' demand much scholarly attention, this should not steer us away from the mundane everyday politics of institutionalisation of rights and exclusion. On the contrary, it becomes all the more important to investigate empirically how local-level competition, conflict and power reshape social institutions and move with a distinct dynamic that does not necessarily fit dominant discourses [Adger et aI., 2001].
