Compulsory acquisition is the power of government to acquire private rights in land without the willing consent of the owner or occupant in order to benefit society and is often necessary for social and economic development and the protection of the natural environment. The exercise of these powers is frequently contentious and problematic. The guide explains what compulsory acquisition and compensation are, and what constitutes good practice in this area, examining the consequences of poor legislation, procedures and implementation.

This manual complements FAO Land Tenure Studies 6: The design of land consolidation pilot projects in Central and Eastern Europe. The manual concentrates on the practical aspects of defining and implementing the first pilot projects. It identifies the main conditions that should be in place before the project starts, and it defines potentials and constraints. It draws attention to issues that should be addressed and it discusses methods, tools and techniques. The manual identifies the main activities in a pilot project and their sequence.

This month, we invite you to participate in the e-consultation on Voluntary Guidelines on Responsible governance of tenure of land and other natural resources. Following a lengthy regional consultation process, additional input is being requested prior to the drafting of the Zero Draft Guidelines. FAO Headquarters marked World Water Day 2011, examining the urgent need for safe water supplies for the world’s rapidly growing urban populations.

This guide is written for people who work in land administration and all those with an interest in land, land tenure and their governance. Although much has been written about the importance of good governance in achieving development goals, there is comparatively little material on good governance in land tenure and administration. Failings in governance have adverse consequences for society as a whole. By contrast, good governance can help achieve economic development and the reduction of poverty. Good governance matters.

Los Estudios de la FAO sobre tenencia de la tierra son publicaciones concisas sobre el tema, a menudo complejo y polémico, de la tenencia de la tierra especialmente en relación con la seguridad alimentaria, la mitigación de la pobreza y el desarrollo rural. Los Estudios no pretenden ser exhaustivos sino reflejar las «buenas prácticas» identificadas por la FAO y muchos de sus colaboradores internacionales en relación con determinados aspectos particulares de la tenencia de la tierra y de su administración.

Most of the world’s poor work in the “informal economy” – outside of recognized and enforceable rules. Thus, even though most have assets of some kind, they have no way to document their possessions because they lack formal access to legally recognized tools such as deeds, contracts and permits.

Recent years have witnessed a renewed interest in agricultural investment. In many cases, this new momentum has translated into large-scale acquisitions of farmland in lower- and middle-income countries. Partly as a result of sustained media attention, these acquisitions have triggered lively if polarised debates about “land grabbing”. Less attention has been paid, however, to alternative ways of structuring agricultural investments that do not involve large-scale land acquisitions.

The Pinheiro Principles provide restitution practitioners, as well as States and UN and others agencies, with a consolidated text relating to the legal, policy, procedural, institutional and technical implementation mechanisms for housing and property restitution. As such, the Principles provide specific policy guidance regarding how to ensure the right to housing and property restitution in practice and for the implementation of restitution laws, programmes and policies, based on existing international human rights, humanitarian, refugee and national standards.

In this issue, we will be introducing the new Land tenure e-journal, which has just launched its first issue. This e-journal is dedicated to land-related issues, including land tenure. We will also learn about the recently issued report, the State of the World’s plant genetic resources for food and agriculture and we will introduce you to the new web site gearing up for the 2012 event marking the twentieth anniversary of the Earth Summit - FAO@Rio+20.

En este número del Boletín del Departamento de Gestión de RecursosNaturales y Medio Ambiente nos complace anunciar que las Naciones Unidas han declarado el año 2012 Año Internacional de la Energía Sostenible para Todos. Esta celebración representa una oportunidad de concentrar la atención mundial en los desafíos a que deben hacer frente tanto los países desarrollados como los países en desarrollo a la hora de abordar el acceso a la energía y los problemas relacionados con el uso eficiente de las fuentes energéticas sostenibles.

أعد هذاالدليل للأشخاص الذين يعملون في مجال ادارة الأراضي وجميع المهتمين بالأراضي وحيازتها، وحكومتها. وبصرف النظر عن المطبوعات العديدة التي صدرت مؤكدة على أهمية الحاكمية الرشيدة في تحقيق الأهداف الانمائية، الا أن المواد المتعلقة بالحاكمية الرشيدة في حيازة الأراضي وادارتها لا تزال محدودة. وتترتب على الاخفاق في الحاكمية تبعات تؤثر تأثيرا معاكسا في المجتع كلهز

This regional evaluation is based on discussions and outputs of the consultation meeting of Francophone Africa on the Voluntary guidelines on the responsible governance of tenure of land and other natural resources that was held in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso on 23-25 June 2010. The opinions expressed in this evaluation are those of the participants at the consultation meeting and do not necessarily reflect those of FAO.