Digitalisation as a driving force for land grabbing in the Global South

Abstract

The aim of this article is to present the impact of digitalisation on the intensification of land grabbing in the Global South in the context of the profound changes that have taken place in the world since the 1970s that have led to the emergence of rentier capitalism. The article shows that it is impossible to understand the scale of land grabbing driven by digitalisation without setting it in the context of the root causes of financialisation, that is, not only the achievements of the fourth industrial revolution, but also the spread of neoliberalism and the endogenous creation of money. It was pointed out that in order to solve the problem of land grabbing in the Global South, internationally coordinated actions should be taken to minimise the risks resulting both from the implementation of digital tools and technologies in the area of land administration and management, and from the promotion of free market principles in land trade and unlimited ex nihilo “production” of money used for investments in the land sector.