The case-study presents the case of the appropriation of pastoral lands by the coming of large-scale extractive industries in Turkana, Kenya. The case-study is meant to raise awareness among the general audience regarding the precarious situation of the pastoralists in the context of this new socio-economic development and lack of secure land tenure. At the same time, it provides this information as a case to local and global civil society, experts, institutions and policy makers.

Most countries in Western Europe have a long tradition for implementing land consolidation projects. In Central and Eastern Europe, land reforms from 1990 on in most countries resulted in farm structures characterized by excessive land fragmentation and small average farm sizes. Most CEE countries have introduced land consolidation instruments to address the structural problems. FAO has from 2000 on supported land consolidation in the region.

This report assesses the legislation of Sudan relating to land tenure and administration (see the list in the Annex to this report) against the provisions of the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security (the VGGT). The assessment is structured along a set of indicators from the VGGT that were considered most relevant for the legal framework on governance of land tenure in Sudan.

Shortly after the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) was founded in 1945, the organization had started to support member countries addressing structural problems in agriculture with land fragmentation and small holding and farm sizes through the development of land consolidation instruments (Binns, 1950). During the 1950s and 1960s, FAO provided technical assistance to the development of land consolidation in member countries in Europe such as Turkey, Greece, Spain and Cyprus, but also in the Near East and Asia (Meliczek, 1973).

The guidelines are the first comprehensive, global instrument on tenure and its administration to be prepared through intergovernmental negotiations. The guidelines set out principles and internationally accepted standards of responsible practices for the use and control of land, fisheries and forests.

Tenure is crucial to the livelihoods of billions of people. For many, their food security is linked to their tenure security. People with weak, insecure tenure rights risk losing their means to support themselves if they lose their access to natural resources. Women often have weaker tenure rights where there is discrimination in laws and customs. Tenure systems define who can use which natural resources, for how long and under what conditions. Many tenure problems are caused by weak governance and attempts to address them are affected by the quality of governance.

Interactive guide to the VGGT

FAO’s Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security (VGGT) were endorsed by the Committee on World Food Security in May 2012. These Voluntary Guidelines have been described as a catalyst leading to improvements in the conditions under which land is held or occupied in the agriculture sectors. The Guidelines address problems of weak governance of tenure and the growing pressure on natural resources, thereby assisting countries to achieve food security for all.

The Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security (VGGT) set out internationally-accepted principles and standards for responsible practices, providing a framework for governments, the private sector and civil society to use when developing policies and programmes for improving food security.

This is a brief description of a course organized by the Regional Government of San Martín in Peru and ProTierras Comunales and implemented in coordination with the regional and local indigenous organisations in 2018.  ProTierras Comunales is part of the Global Project “Responsible Land Policy”, implemented since late 2015 by German development cooperation in six countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America to promote the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests (VGGT, 2012). 

Históricamente América Central es una región con importantes niveles de inequidad en la distribución y uso de los recursos naturales. Estos niveles de inequidades, partes de procesos económico socios y políticos (concentración de las cadenas de valores, agricultura de escala industrial apoyada por políticas publicas hacia los mercados de exportación), han generado algunas problemáticas relacionadas a la gobernanza de los recursos y su tenencia, tanto para la población como para los ecosistemas que sustentan en gran medida el crecimiento económico de los países de la región.

The Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security explicitly mention pastoralists as users of the Guidelines and as targets of capacity building. Despite the historical and often ongoing marginalization of pastoralists, this technical guide has been developed in response to emerging opportunities to support pastoralists and to strengthen their land and resource rights.