Family Farming Knowledge Platform

Responsible governance of land tenure as a strategy to strengthen land restoration and drought management initiatives in Mexico

Synthesis document of the National Dialogue

Land degradation is one of the most urgent environmental problems affecting Mexico in the 21st century and the Americas region. It is exacerbated in the context of climate change. Mexican rural sectors, especially women and Indigenous Peoples, have played a fundamental role in soil management and mitigating adverse climatic conditions through ancestral agricultural practices and care. However, there is still a gap in guaranteeing their access to land and their legal security over land and natural resources.  Since the development of a joint guide that integrates FAO's Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security (VGGT) with the objectives against desertification, degradation and drought, national consultations have been developed in different parts of the world to identify opportunities to deepen this linkage and the analysis on how they are related. Thus, the Joint Initiative between the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the Government of Mexico aims to integrate land tenure security for women in Mexico into land degradation neutrality (LDN) objectives. The initiative places rural women affected by desertification, land degradation and drought at the centre, promoting the strengthening of their management capacities and knowledge sharing. It aims to improve land governance by ensuring historically marginalized groups actively participate in land tenure decisions that directly and indirectly affect NDT objectives. This document synthesizes the multi-stakeholder National Dialogue (consultation) developed in Mexico in 2024, which included various participatory methodologies and an event held in Mexico City in September. It gathers the context, primary reflections, and proposals for action to address the relationship between tenure, degradation, and desertification issues.

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Publisher: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
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Author: Anamaría Martínez
Other authors: Emma Astner, Gloria Ferreyra, Juan Sebastián Anaya
Organization: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
Other organizations: World Resources Institute, Mexico City
Year: 2025
ISBN: 978-92-5-139588-2
Country/ies: Mexico
Geographical coverage: Latin America and the Caribbean
Type: Book
Content language: English
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