Tropentag, September 10 - 12, 2025, Bonn "Reconciling land system changes with planetary health"

Space assemblages and land tenure relations in contemporary Tanzania

German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS), Transformation of Economic and Social Systems, Germany

Abstract

Drawing from extensive field work in Tanzania, we explore how space is assembled and how land tenure relations evolve in an agricultural corridor. We argue that while most studies denote space as physical land that is mostly assembled in a corridor, as demonstrated in vast literature on land deals, space goes beyond physical land. In areas where space is assembled land tenure relations also evolve in various ways but in most cases with polarizing outcomes across the class, gender and age divide. We note the importance of knowledge transfer (scientific and IKS) as a central pivot in the assemblage of space, and this is important to the development of an agricultural corridor. Actors involved in space assemblage do so consciously and unconsciously. The actors range from state institutions, local communities, private firms, civil society and international governance organisations. We identify and discuss three frontiers or fixes in the space assemblages in a corridor these; land and crop frontier; market frontier; technology and knowledge frontier as arenas were assemblages play out vividly in an agricultural growth corridor. For instance, firms working in marketing and ICT services would assemble space by shrinking the distance and actors involved in the marketing of specific agriculture produce, this is achieved through the development of online and digital apps and actual physical markets. Relatedly, those involved in the restructuring and zonation of land spaces in accordance with the dictates of a corridor would deploy new land use plans and accompanying narratives to prepare communities for the new space assemblages. The study shades more light in exploring the role of knowledge transfers, space creation as forms of assemblages that must be analysed when engaging with growth corridors in communities dependent on land tenure relations for socioeconomic activities.

Keywords: Agricultural growth corridor, agriculture, knowledge, land tenure, space making, spatial temporal fix

Contact Address: George Mudimu, German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS), Transformation of Economic and Social Systems, Tulpenfeld 6, 53113 Bonn, Germany, e-mail: george.mudimuidos-research.de