Mozambique is one of the poorest countries of the world. Around 35 % of Mozambican households are chronically food insecure and 46 % of all children below 5 years are malnourished. In order to boost development, the Mozambican government and donors have been actively promoting large-scale private investment in tree plantations. According to recent figures, six companies are operating on a total project area of 550,000 hectares.

Reducing access to land

Chikweti Forests, a subsidiary of Global Solidarity Forest Fund (GSFF), a Sweden-based investment fund, has established tree plantations on 13,000 ha in Niassa province. While Chikweti announced that it would provide jobs, the jobs created are scarce, instable and not well paid, and thus do not provide alternative sources of livelihood, according to FIAN International’s report ‘The human rights impacts of tree plantations in Niassa province, Mozambique’. “Peasant communities in the area have seen their access to land for food production diminished and fear that the environmental consequences of the fast growing pine and eucalyptus trees present a growing threat to water supplies, soil conditions and biodiversity”, said Philip Seufert, of FIAN International and author of the report.

As small-scale agriculture is the main source of livelihood in the region, these factors have a huge impact on the rural population and put peasants at risk of food insecurity. Their rights to adequate food and water, as recognized by the United Nations and Mozambican law, are violated. “All are affected, but especially women”, said Rita João Rezuane, a representative of the peasants. “They perform all the work in the house and in the fields, and they are responsible for cooking and fetching water”.

Impact on local community

 Because the plantations are surrounded by fences, which the people are not allowed to cross, the women must walk all around them to fetch fire wood and, in the future, water. They have to travel much longer distances”, Rita João Rezuane added.

An investigation by the Mozambican government in 2010 confirmed the complaints of the local population. However, so far, no adequate and effective measures have been taken. Even though the main responsibility for the violations of the right to food of the affected people lies with the Mozambican state, Sweden carries responsibilities as well. The Mozambican peasant organization, UNAC, which supports the affected communities, has therefore requested FIAN to address the Swedish government.

A delegation of three representatives of Mozambican peasants’ organizations recently toured Europe, meeting with politicians, investors and journalists to alert them to the situation in Niassa and articulate their demands.

“It was good to deliver our message in person”, said Júlio Dos Santos Pêssigo, a peasant member of the delegation. “It is now extremely crucial for the public to let the Swedish authorities know that they support us, the peasants, in our quest to defend our right to food by holding them accountable for the actions of Chikweti Forests”.

Legal obligations

Sweden is a State Party to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. The Swedish government is therefore obliged to respect, protect and fulfil human rights, in particular the right to food and to water. The human rights obligations of states include extraterritorial obligations (ETOs), according to which they have the duty to take measures to respect and protect the enjoyment of human rights in other countries. The extraterritorial human rights obligations have recently been clarified in the Maastricht Principles on Extraterritorial Obligations of States in the area of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

By promoting and financing the setting up of large-scale tree plantations in Mozambique and by not taking sufficient and effective measures to regulate GSFF and to ensure that investors do not nullify or impair the enjoyment of human rights, the government of Sweden has failed to abide to its obligations under international human rights law.

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