Participatory and community-driven tenure recording

Open Tenure supports in-the-field collection of tenure information by communities, civil society organizations and institutions through easy-to-use mobile applications and web-based tools.

Designed to support participatory, fit-for-purpose and locally adaptable approaches, the tools help communities document, validate and strengthen individual, collective and customary tenure rights.

Open Tenure requires minimal customization and focuses primarily on configuration, simplifying implementation and reducing the need for software development expertise.

Who needs Open Tenure?

• communities seeking to document and strengthen tenure rights;
• organizations supporting participatory mapping and territorial governance;
• NGOs facilitating community-based tenure documentation processes;
• institutions implementing fit-for-purpose and systematic registration approaches;
• projects supporting FPIC, conflict prevention and community participation.

Countries and organizations interested in implementation can use the Open Tenure Deployment Checklist developed by FAO to assess readiness and identify recommendations for deployment and capacity development.

Why communities use Open Tenure

• Offline data collection in remote areas
• Community ownership and control of information
• Adaptable multilingual forms
• Participatory validation and transparency
• Flexible integration with customary governance systems
• Capacity development for women and youth
• Support for dialogue and conflict prevention

Open Tenure and Community Server

Open Tenure
Mobile application supporting participatory mapping and in-the-field recording of tenure rights using smartphones and tablets.

Community Server
Web-based platform supporting data storage, visualization, validation and management of community-collected tenure and spatial information.

Recording stages of tenure rights

1. Community information dissemination
2. Download of imagery and existing tenure information
3. Field collection of claims, boundaries and supporting evidence
4. Upload and synchronization with Community Server
5. Public display and review of claims
6. Community moderation and validation processes
7. Publication of community-endorsed tenure records