Gaining positive momentum at the World Bank Land Conference 2025

: FAO/Yasmine Iqbal

Several colleagues from the Land Tenure Team were in Washington D.C at the 2025 World Bank Land Conference from 5 to 8 May. As every year, the Conference was again the hotspot for networking. This edition, themed “Securing Land Tenure and Access for Climate Action: Moving from Awareness to Action” was smaller than the previous ones, i.e. about 700 participants, a significant reduction in size and about half of what it used to be before COVID-19. And although it was maybe a little less vibrant than last year (when the land community was certainly overly excited to reconvene after several years due to the pandemic), the reduced size seemed to have allowed for a less hectic and more constructive atmosphere, a more focused agenda, and more productive exchanges.

In hindsight, the three core messages to take home were:

Firstly, the overall mood was positive, despite the challenging context due to budget cuts, budget shifts and lay-offs affecting the broader development sector (which, with no doubt, was very visible in the very district the conference was held in). The current context pushes us to think outside the box, to partner and to rethink alliances, to do things differently, but also to do it better with less. The various sessions and meetings around strategic partnerships for development across levels were illustrative of this.

Secondly, the conference showed strong political commitment towards land and land reform. The policy forum held on Tuesday gathered nine Ministerial and high-level delegations, all showing commitment, engagement and progress towards responsible land governance. In addition, the conference hosted a large number of official country delegations (probably about 30), who were present to discuss with financial and technical parties the effective implementation of their land policies, land administration and land information systems. The peer-to-peer exchanges during regional forums were vibrant.

Thirdly, and even though the process of legally recording land ownership and related transactions, including the issuance of land titles and other legal documents, was very (too?) present throughout the event, the conference highlighted the importance and the role of collective lands rights and informality. It recognized the advantages of building on what has already been accepted within the customary and/or informal tenure systems as the formal legal system is being reformed and implemented - as opposed to expecting people to disengage from binding customary obligations involving land when improved formal laws are finally enacted and enforced. The well-received presence of Indigenous leaders at the World Bank certainly helped breaking these often too narrow focuses.

To conclude, overall, it seems that we are presently gaining positive momentum with regards to responsible land reform and tenure security, thanks to upscaled commitment, new approaches, and better coordinated actions and aligned efforts.

Check out the World Bank Land Conference 2025 highlights video here.

Looking forward to the next conference… in two years’ time.

FAO.org

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Gaining positive momentum at the World Bank Land Conference 2025