The paper discusses rights to the most ubiquitous natural resources in Africa, those located on the commons. Comprising both high value (e.g. wetlands) and low value (e.g. extensive rangelands) resources, these make a vital contribution to the livelihoods of many rural households. Clarifying and strengthening these rights should form a central component of programmes of tenure reform. The paper emphasizes the importance of common property resource to African livelihood systems, and their wider significance within the range of institutional arrangements by which people gain access to resources. The dynamism, variety and complexity of rights to common pool resources provide a major challenge for tenure reforms, examples of which are vividly illustrated here by case study material from different parts of the continent. A number of views are presented which seek to modify the current approach to understanding common property resources and their management, known as the 'new institutionalist' paradigm. The paper ends with an analysis of the implications of both empirical research and theoretical perspectives for tenure reform policies.