The first section of this issue brief reviews the largely under-recognized place of the ASM sector in national economies. Next, it describes briefly how ASM has been at the root of many resource conflicts in developing countries—particularly in west and central Africa. This is followed by a discussion of how the clarification of property rights contributes to the reduction of conflicts over mineral resources.

Broad-based economic growth is essential to sustainable, long-term development. It creates opportunities for raising living standards, provides countries with the resources to expand access to basic services and enable citizens to chart their own prosperous futures. Despite incredible progress that has reduced poverty and improved livelihoods around the world, global economic growth since 2008 has slowed and in some cases regressed. Today, three quarters of the world’s poor don’t have a bank account and access to capital remains a significant barrier throughout the developing world.

Insecure land tenure and property rights for women can contribute to the spread of HIV and to a weakened ability to cope with the consequences of AIDS. Land is a critical asset for the rural poor, and in most countries, men hold the rights to and control over land. As a result, women are often economically dependent on men, do not have secure fallback positions, and, therefore, have very little bargaining power.
Release Date: Monday, May 20, 2013File:  Land Tenure, Property Rights, and HIV/AIDS

The limited research on the benefits of women gaining secure rights to land and property suggest positive results: an increase in women’s participation in household decision-making; an increase in net household income; a reduction in domestic violence; an increased ability to prevent being infected by HIV/AIDS; and increased expenditures on food and education for children. Understanding the complexity surrounding women’s land rights is critical to ensuring that those rights are protected and improved.

This issue brief presents an overview of REDD+ and the associated tenure and property rights challenges and opportunities.
Spanish Translation
Release Date: Wednesday, April 17, 2013File:  Land Tenure and REDD+: Risks to Property Rights and Opportunities for Economic Growth

In both climate change adaptation and mitigation, contentious struggles for access and control of resources may turn violent unless stakeholders from the local to the international scale engage in open and transparent processes to negotiate new rules of access to land and other natural resources. Dispute resolution must go hand-in-hand with policies to restructure both statutory and customary tenure. National and international policy makers are beginning to explore the place of property rights and resource tenure in the discussions of climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies.

The PRRGP chief of party, Mark Freudenberger, attended the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) in Tel Aviv, Israel from June 21-24, 2010.
Property Rights and Artisanal Diamond Development Project (PRADD) COP Attends Kimberley Process Certification Scheme

In Bolivia, where 65 percent of the population is indigenous and 83 percent of the rural population lives below the poverty line, landlessness is one of the best predictors of poverty. While the Bolivian government has enacted policies to improve land access and tenure security, progress has been slow and as of 2009, only 37% of Bolivian land had been formally titled.

A guest post by Nayna J Jhaveri, Ph.D., Resource Tenure Specialist, Tetra Tech

On March 14, the Haiti Property Law Working Group released Haiti Land Transaction Manual, Vol. 1: A how-to guide for the legal sale of property in Haiti. This manual is an important step in the reconstruction efforts in Haiti following the devastating 2010 earthquake, which have been greatly impeded by weak land administration systems and the resulting disputes over land and property. The new manual will help Haitians, international donors, and civil society navigate the country’s complex bureaucratic legal system.

Côte d’Ivoire emerged from a decade-long civil war in early 2011, but its diamonds—which played a role in sustaining the conflict—have remained on the world’s black lists. In November 2013, however, the Kimberley Process (KP) Plenary in Johannesburg recognized that Cote d’Ivoire had met minimum requirements of the KP Certification Scheme, the international mechanism to prevent conflict diamonds from entering the world’s markets.

Afghanistan has significant amounts of mineral resources according to an assessment completed by the U.S. Geological Survey in 2007. However, according to a recent article by the New York Times “the potential resource boom seems increasingly imperiled by corruption, violence and intrigue.” Control over land and resource rights are increasingly becoming a source of contention, especially as the government begins to make land concessions.