Die rechtliche Steuerung transnationaler Agrarlandinvestitionen in einkommensschwachen Ländern („Land Grabbing“)

This article investigates the governance potential of different policies and laws addressing the issues arising out of large-scale farmland investments in lowincome countries (“land grabbing”). It interprets their development on thewhole as a tentative effort by a set of different actors to forge an effective governance system. It is argued that the development of these laws and policies has largely been defined by three key features: 1) forming a better understanding of the complex issues arising out of large-scale farmland investments, 2) reframing these issues, the responsibilities of involved actors, and the purpose of regulation, and finally, 3) flexibly shiftingmodes of governance in view of ineffective national and international laws and institutions. All three strategies have contributed to establishing a set of transnational guiding principles and standards of care that will substantially increase legal accountability and have the potential to effectively change investment practices.