Dear Land Portal users,

The Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure is an internationally negotiated framework to improve land governance.  For those working in the land sector, it is a framework which is referred to regularly. Perhaps this is because the VGGT comprises inputs from over 1000 stakeholders with different cultural backgrounds from all regions of the world. Since its’ inception in 2012, as of today, almost 140 countries have officially endorsed the VGGT in international forums.

Something exciting is around the corner! Our team is hard at work building a spatial platform, fit for the needs of everyday users! We want to be gone with polygons and spatial coordinates being reserved for experts.  What we really want is for conversations around data to be inclusive. This platform aims to achieve exactly that! Read more here below: 

Why a Spatial Platform? 

There is no doubt that we are living in the era of information. Availability of accurate and up to date information, including data, is critical to planning and management, for transparency and accountability.  It can help inform learning and scale up good practices, as well as implementing policy, especially when it comes to land. While it is an often-repeated rhetoric that there is a lack of land data, the reality is slightly more nuanced than this.

The data ecosystem is an extremely vast and cluttered space. What data exist? What data is up to date? What data is reliable? Who owns the data? Can I use the data without inflicting harm? Who are the data subjects? Many people across numerous sectors struggle with such questions and more on a daily basis. The land governance sector in India is no different. But somehow, it seems the land data ecosystem in India is more complex and controversial.

Having and using information has always been a powerful force for change, helping to fight corruption, enabling citizens to participate more fully in public life and allowing people from all walks of life to exercise their fundamental human rights. We live in a time when paradoxical topics such as ‘fake news’ and ‘big data’ are part of our everyday lives.

Of late, land has increasingly been figuring into the development sector, for both positive and negative reasons.

In the last five years, significant steps have been taken to put land tenure security as a priority in global policy frameworks, but also in implementation plans. A side event at CFS45, organised by the Global Donor Working Group on Land with other key players, took stock of progress. 

I had the privilege of representing the Land Portal Foundation at the FAO Expert consultation on “Knowledge sharing for agricultural innovations applicable for smallholders and family farmers in Europe and Central Asia”, which took place in Gödöllő (Hungary) from the 10-13 September 2018.

Droughts, floods, hurricanes, and other disasters displaced over 24 million people in 2016. When people leave their homes behind, land records offer critical protection of their property rights. This is crucial, as land and homes are usually

With the inclusion of several land-related indicators in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), land data collection and monitoring has reached an unprecedented momentum. There is a palpable positive drive within both global and local civil society to contribute to the official process through advocacy, data collection and international monitoring efforts. The broad consensus is that data and information are building blocks that support better informed decision and policy making at all levels.