Enhancing Global and Nutritional Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests
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Many countries face a number of challenges concerning governance of land, fisheries and forests. Transfers of legitimate tenure rights are made in an environment of insecure tenure and with high risk, and the result is often a loss for all involved. The pressure on land, fisheries and forests has accelerated the stress faced by the world’s growing population, and environmental degradation and climate change further reduce the availability of land, fisheries and forests. If countries comply with the principles and good practice as set out in the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security (VGGT), they will invariably improve the governance of their tenure systems and will promote sustainable social and economic development that can help eradicate poverty and food insecurity, and encourage responsible investment. The Department for International Development (DFID)-funded project was part of the wider FAO umbrella programme funded by a range of resource partners to support the implementation of the VGGT globally.
Objectifs
The project made a significant contribution to increasing national and global awareness of the VGGT across a wide range of stakeholders, and laid an important foundation for further work. The capacities of decision-makers and other stakeholders to improve the governance of tenure in their countries were successfully enhanced. In Myanmar, Nepal and South Africa the level of awareness and technical capacity to implement the VGGT was improved. A pilot project that was implemented in Uganda (see Activities) used Open Tenure from the SOLA suite of open source applications for documenting and certifying customary rights, which is now informing the roll-out of a follow-up project financed by the UN Capital Development Fund. Also in Uganda, 56 Forest Management Plans were validated by communities/private forest holders and district authorities, and approved by district councils. In Nigeria, SOLA Registry was customized and incorporated the use of Open Tenure for systematic registration of land tenure rights in three states. The project produced groundbreaking results on extraterritorial investments made by China, India, and South Africa in African countries. This culminated in an International Conference on the VGGT, which provided a foundation for further engagement, particularly with Chinese investors and outward investment agencies in Phase II of the project. Many capacitydevelopment products were created in a variety of languages, such as technical guides and learning programmes, which are now publicly available (see thumbnails on the next page). Finally, the Committee on World Food Security of the United Nations (CFS), which holds the global mandate to report on progress with VGGT implementation, received technical support to share lessons learned and showcase success stories.Impact
Improved practical and demonstrated governance of tenure of land, fisheries and forests will contribute to the eradication of hunger and poverty, sustainable social and economic development and the sustainable use of the environment.Activités
§ A suite of high-quality VGGT capacity-development tools was produced; and 16
489 learners, distributed across six regions and from a wide range of organizations, took one or more of eight VGGT courses freely available online.
§ A comprehensive regional Blended Learning Programme on the VGGT to support institutional capacity development in the field of governance of tenure of land, fisheries and forests was implemented in Latin America (Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Mexico and Guatemala).
§ A Blended Learning Programme on “Governing land by women and men”, to support gender equality in the governance of tenure, was implemented in Nepal, Mongolia, Sierra Leone/Liberia, and South Africa.
§ The Blended Learning Programme on “Safeguarding land tenure rights in the context of agricultural investments - FPIC” was developed and rolled out successfully in Uganda. Consequently, it was repeated in Sierra Leone and Liberia (with additional funds from the Government of Germany).
§ The SOLA suite of software applications was further developed and used in two countries: i) in Uganda, the first Certificates of Customary Ownership (CCOs) were issued in Kasese District, where 4 783 plots were demarcated and registered, and over half of the households were issued certificates; ii) in Nigeria, state ministries were exposed to the new technology (SOLA Registry and Open Tenure), including computerized systems that supported the core registry functions, and provided ways to improve tenure governance.
§ In Myanmar and South Africa participants undertook capacity self-assessments on the relevant national policies and laws; the organizations, institutional set-up and coordination mechanisms; technical capacities (related to planning, operations and communications); and implementation capacities.
§ In Nepal, the Government took initiative to settle land tenure problems, particularly addressing the issues of landless and marginal farmers, women and Dalits, and prepared working procedures to resolve tenure issues regarding 'dualownership'.
§ In Uganda, targeted support was provided to the Government on forest tenure, resulting in 56 Forest Management Plans that were validated by communities/private forest holders and district authorities, and approved by district councils.
§ An International Conference on the VGGT and extraterritorial investments by China, India and South Africa in agriculture in African Countries was held in Beijing, comprising two workshops and various visits, with over 100 participants.