The politics of ownership: Tanzanian coffee policy in the age of liberal reformism

In the last two decades, the twin processes of liberalization and privatization have facilitated the ‘capturing’ of key markets and assets by foreign interests in many African countries. This is being increasingly perceived in domestic constituencies as a loss of national ownership and has prompted attempts by the state to defend the interests of ‘local’ firms and businesspeople. These actions have often been portrayed in the literature as manoeuvres that — in the guise of nationalism — are ultimately characterized by clientelistic and rent-seeking objectives. The analysis of coffee politics and policy in Tanzania carried out in this article challenges this interpretation. It shows that practices affecting the perceived (il)legitimacy of ‘foreign’ ownership of assets and control of markets constitute elements of a ‘politics of ownership’. This politics, although often sporting antiliberal features, does not question the essential nature of market reforms. Rather, it seeks to undermine the domination of ‘foreign’ interests in key industries through the redefinition of the parameters of competition to the advantage of local actors.