"At last, we are beginning to harvest more than 100 years
of international advocacy of Indigenous peoples."
- Dr. Myrna Cunningham Kain, on her initial reactions to the $1.7 billion pledge
Gender equality guidelines will motivate Zambia’s traditional leaders to champion women’s rights in land and resource management
There is an immense pressure on land in Uganda. The country has a rapidly growing population and is host to the world’s third largest refugee population. Particularly poor people struggle to get access to healthy food. Agriculture practices need to become more efficient and focused on the domestic market. The Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (EKN) in Uganda works to improve food security in selected areas in the country. Among several food security projects, the EKN works with the LAND-at-scale program to improve land governance.
By Monica de Souza Louw, Land and Accountability Research Centre (LARC), University of Cape Town
* This piece was originally published as part of the online discussion on customary law in Southern Africa
The Land Rights Law (LRL), enacted on the 23rd of August 2018, was an impressive feat. It recognizes the land rights of all Liberians, especially rural communities who have historically been subject to mere user rights on their ancestral lands. The LRL protects the rights of communities to their claimed customary areas as their lawful property – “with or without deed”. This provision places an estimated 70% or more of the country under customary ownership.
Access to and control of land is one of the challenges that young people face in Zambia. Land is a valued resource which youth are often expected to access through adults, or wait until they are adults to acquire.
By Ben Cousins, Emeritus Professor, Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies (PLAAS), University of the Western Cape
* This article originally appeared in the The Conversation on 22 June 2021
Zambia’s launching of a National Lands Policy on 11 May 2021 represents an important achievement after almost two decades of periodic drafting, consultation and validation attempts.
Summaries and selected replays from the 3rd Mekong Regional Land Forum are available below. Full replays of the plenary sessions will be posted shortly -- check back soon!