AFAFE is a land management system that restructures land so that it can be used for agriculture, forestry and environmental purposes. Previously known as land consolidation, AFAFE aims to establish production units on single blocks or large plots of land in order to improve land use, ensure that natural spaces in rural areas are used productively, and support communal or intercommunal land planning and management. This constantly evolving, multi-actor system dates back to the 18th century. It was initially used by rural communes to deal with land fragmentation arising from inheritance, and then adopted by the State as a means of furthering public interests following the First World War.

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This paper is not intended to promote a particular technique or tool, or encourage the application of similar technologies in Southern contexts. The aim is to provide some insight
into their origins and the conditions for their implementation in very specific contexts, remembering that efforts to secure land tenure in Africa should support the local management
and State regulation of existing practices. This may require different types of tools that need to be invented on a case-by-case basis.