The Senate is set to debate a bill reforming the Rural Land Law—originally enacted in 2011 under the Cristina Fernández administration to cap foreign ownership of land at 15 percent.

In any case, the remaining provisions of the proposal allow for the use of land from burned forests, as well as land expropriation and evictions.

With this modification, the *La Libertad Avanza* caucus and its Senate allies hope to secure the votes needed to pass the bill in the first legislative stage.

Regardless, foreign ownership of Argentine territory remains highly controversial; although a 15 percent limit was established in 2011, foreign companies had already acquired far more than that percentage—particularly in border areas rich in mineral, water, and forest resources.

These 13.2 million hectares represent 5 percent of the country’s mainland surface area—an expanse comparable to the provinces of Santa Fe or Santiago del Estero, and roughly ten times the size of the Malvinas (Falkland) Islands or the size of England.

This rural land is not distributed evenly. The highest concentrations are found where the country’s key strategic assets converge: fresh water, critical minerals, ports, forests, energy infrastructure, and border crossings.

In General Lamadrid, La Rioja, 56.7 percent of mining land is under non-Argentine control; likewise, in Lacar, in the Patagonian province of Neuquen, 54.2 percent of water resources are owned by foreigners.

jdt/mh