This publication describes the experience of a number of transition countries in Central and Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union with crafting regulatory frameworks for irrigation water users’ organizations. It also seeks to distil a number of key regulatory requirements. As a result, this study serves as a design/drafting manual for policymakers and for drafters of legislation on water users’ organizations.

This paper represents part of an area of work which analyses the linkages between rights to land and water. An initial scoping paper explored the interface between land and water rights (LSP Working Paper 10: Hodgson, S. (2004). “Land and water – the rights interface”). It is complemented by two regional analyses: this Working Paper and LSP Working Paper 25: IIED. (2006). “Land and water rights in the Sahel: Tenure challenges of improving access to water for agriculture”.

This report is based on the proceedings of the Technical Consultation on Gender, Property Rights and Livelihoods in the Era of AIDS, organized by FAO in November 2008. It takes stock of where FAO and its partners are in terms of addressing property rights insecurity and provides a proposed framework through which future action can take place.

Readers are invited to submit manuscripts in English, French or Spanish on research and analysis of issues related to land reform, land settlement or cooperatives. Submitted manuscripts are read by members of the Editorial Board and also by outside reviewers. Authors are requested to provide an alphabetical reference list at the end of the article.

A terra, ao longo da história, simboliza poderio político, económico e sociocultural não só a nível dos Estados como também das comunidades e do indivíduo. No contexto actual, é um dos principais recursos para o desenvolvimento e qualidade da vida das pessoas, não só no meio rural, como também no urbano e/ou peri-urbano, caracterizando-se como factor de exclusão ou inclusão, emancipação ou marginalização social.

This publication explores various aspects of the interface between water rights and land tenure. It is intended to synthetize and assess current learning on this topic, to define salient issues and to propose fruitful approaches for further investigation.

Document de travail sur les régimes fonciers 19. Ce rapport a été écrit faisant partie du processus global de consultation et d’élaboration des Directives Volontaires et vise à contribuer à la préparation subséquente du Guide Technique pour le Genre. Le rapport contextualise et définit le genre dans le cadre des Directives Volontaires, explique ce que signifie gouvernance foncière d’une prospective genre et identifie et analyse les principaux thèmes et questions.

The purpose of this paper is examine the notion of tenure in connection with water resources and to explore whether the concept of water tenure has the potential to make a useful contribution towards resolving the world’s water resources challenges. It seeks to provide answers to the following questions: (a) What is water tenure? (b) Does water tenure really exist or is water simply too different from other natural resources? (c) Could the concept of water tenure be useful in terms of the development of natural resources policies and practices?

Unprecedented pressures on land have been created as new areas are cultivated, taken over by expanding urban centres or are abandoned due to degradation, climate change and conflict. These developments have strained the rules, processes and institutions that determine which land resources are used, by whom, for how long and under what conditions.

Esta publicación ofrece una visión general sobre los principales temas debatidos durante el desarrollo y la aprobación de la Ley Nacional de Seguridad Alimentaria de la India (2013), que obliga jurídicamente a los Gobiernos nacional y estatales para ampliar el alcance de la protección social a la población del país.