Conference Details | International Bar Association

A webinar co-presented by the IBA Agricultural Law Section and Advancing Land-based Investment Governance (ALIGN)*, and supported by the IBA African Regional Forum, the IBA Asia Pacific Regional Forum, the IBA European Regional Forum, the IBA Healthcare and Life Sciences Law Committee, the IBA International Commerce and Distribution Committee, the IBA Technology Law Committee and the IBA Water Law Committee.

Responsible investment in agriculture is a critically important issue and lawyers in the African and Asia Pacific geographic regions of the world need specialised knowledge to strengthen legal capacity to master this niche area of the law. Utilising the contributions of the Committee on World Food Security Principles for Responsible Investment in Agriculture and Food Systems (CFS RAI Principles) and the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance on Tenure (VGGT), attendees will better understand their application in everyday legal work related to investments in agriculture for the African and Asia Pacific regions.

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Specific webinar topics will include:

Why should lawyers worry about investments in agricultural lands?

Attracting agricultural and other land-based investments is often a key policy goal of many governments, but the risks to governments and communities associated with these investments – including dispossession, environmental degradation and conflict – can undermine potentially positive impacts that such projects may bring. Investors, too, face significant financial and reputational risks from such investments. What is the role of lawyers in facilitating investments that are responsible and realise sustainable outcomes? What resources are available to facilitate the work of government and company lawyers in identifying and mitigating land rights-related risks, respecting legitimate tenure rights and addressing practical considerations for due diligence?
Legal frameworks and land-based investment: why should lawyers take soft law instruments into account?

Legal frameworks are powerful forces that help to shape the outcomes of investment. Understanding how these various frameworks interact, and how international soft law instruments – including the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure (VGGT) – can influence these frameworks, is critical for advancing responsible land-based investment. This session will explore how legal frameworks governing land-based investment overlap and interact, how they shape the rights of stakeholders and how soft-law instruments can strengthen laws, policies and practices.
Community consultation and consent

A core dimension of responsible investment is the identification of legitimate tenure rights holders and the meaningful participation by affected rights holders and compliance with the obligation to obtain the free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) of a community or people affected by a project. This session will highlight international standards regarding consultation and FPIC and provide examples of good practice.

*ALIGN supports governments, civil society, local communities and other relevant actors in strengthening the governance of land-based investments. The project is implemented by a consortium led by the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED), the Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment (CCSI) and Namati, and is funded with UK aid from the UK government. Some of this webinar material has been produced as part of ALIGN by CCSI and IIED, however the views expressed do not necessarily reflect the official views or policies of ALIGN partners or the UK Government.

Fees

	Prices in GBP + UK VAT @ 20%, where applicable:
IBA members	Free
Non-members	Free

Session recordings, where applicable, will be available to all registered delegates. Please note registration will close one hour prior to the event.

Certificate of Attendance

Certificates of attendance for this webinar are only available to IBA members. IBA members who have attended the live broadcast for more than 30 minutes based on verified sign-in and sign-out times will be sent a certificate to the email address provided at the time of registration. Certificates can only be issued to the name provided at the time of registration. If you have any queries relating to your certificate of attendance, please email webinars@int-bar.org.