Land Investment for Transformation (LIFT) Programme

LIFT is a £72.7 million programme funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID) that operates in four regions of Ethiopia: Amhara, Oromia, the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and People’s Region (SNNPR) and Tigray. LIFT is based on the principle that if landholders have security of tenure, then they are more likely to invest in their land and agricultural practices and improve the quality of their produce. As a result, their income will rise.

To achieve this, LIFT is supporting the Government of Ethiopia’s efforts on increasing rural land tenure security. This is done through land certification and developing improved rural land administration systems, to drive investment and increase productive land use. LIFT is unique in its approach as it also champions a market systems approach to catalyse household tenure security, leading to investment and improved land productivity and income. This is a first for a land reform programme on this scale.

Key Stakeholders

DFID Ethiopia
Ministry of Agriculture
Rural Land Administration and Utilization Directorate
Regional Land Bureaus
Microfinance institutions: ACSI, Aggar, Harbu, OCSSCO, OMFI, PEACE and Wasasa
National Bank of Ethiopia
REILA II Project
World Bank