Like many homeowners in the US, I have a pile of mortgage papers and the deed to our house cluttering my cabinets, and I don’t give them much thought. Likewise, renters have a lease document—usually kept in a folder somewhere—that formalizes their right to use and enjoy that dwelling.
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.
The recent 11thsession of the Working Party on Land Administration took place in Geneva late last month. We spoke with Paul van Asperen of the University of Twente regarding the event.
Last week, the Eleventh Session of the Working Party on Land Administration (WPLA) provided an international platform for a high-level exchange on issues related to land administration and management. Amie Figueiredo, of the Housing and Land Management Unit at the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) helped us t0 answer a few questions on the event.
This week,the 11thsession of the Working Party on Land Administration convenes in Geneva, Switzerland. The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) hosts the event and it will discuss the megatrends impactingland administration, such as, new business ecosystems, urbanization, climate change, disruptive technology, migration, etc.
Social watchdogs and development activists in Rajshahi unequivocally called for safeguarding the marginal and other rootless populations for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.
They mentioned that the present government had been working relentlessly to attain the Sustainable Development Goals. Emphasis should be given on proper and adequate rehabilitation of the vulnerable population, they said. All government and non-government entities concerned should come forward and work together to this end.
By 2050, two thirds of the world’s population will live in urban areas. How cities develop will determine whether we can reduce economic and racial inequality, effectively address climate change, and meet many of the United Nation’s Sustainable Development goals. The human rights movement can help move cities in the right direction, through more engagement in municipal-level policy and advocacy, and through greater attention to the growing corporate influence within our cities.
A revolution is underway. In Latin America, it has likely crested. In Southeast Asia and West Africa, it is moving apace. In East Africa, it is at its most intense.
It is brewing most remarkably not in storied national capitals and megacities, but in the medium sized, second-tier cities, less watched by governments and journalists. Cities that might double in size in 12-15 years, yet already under-resourced.
It is a demographic revolution: significant population growth which drives the epochal growth of city dwelling, as the world becomes ever more urban.
Until today, the world had no internationally comparable data on citizens’ perceptions of the security their property rights; no way of tracking how people evaluated the likelihood of their home or other land being taken from them.
The National Slum Dwellers Federation of Uganda (NSDFU) is a network of approximately 350 community groups with a membership of approximately 38,000 people. NSDFU is a member of the Shack/Slum Dwellers International (SDI) network, a transnational network of the urban poor founded in 1996, and which brings together over a million federated slum dwellers in 30 countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
