Over the last 30 years, the nation states in the Mekong region have taken steps to reform their land policy to facilitate the efforts to end poverty, create wealth and grow their economies. To do this most effectively in this modern age requires the leveraging of technical innovations and data.

Now, as the official process around the Sustainable Development Goals is beginning, it is critical that the land sector works together effectively. Therefore, Habitat for Humanity (Solid Ground Campaign), LandMark, Resource Equity, the Rights and Resources Initiative and the Land Portal Foundation want to bring land stakeholders together to discuss the incredible momentum around land and data.

Please register for our upcoming webinar on “How open data on land and property rights can improve global food security and nutrition”

Date: Apr 19, 2018 4:00 PM CEST
Register here: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/3331496432886332417

Over a billion people worldwide, predominately smallholder farmers, lack secure land rights, which are crucial for obtaining loans and providing the long-term visibility necessary for planning successful agricultural operations. Open data technologies enable mapping and access to information on land rights, which in turn can lead to more protection for community and smallholder farmers.

The conference will provide a platform for agricultural information and knowledge specialists in Africa to discuss and strategize their contributions to the global 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda and the African Union's Agenda 2063, focusing on the conference theme and sub-themes. 

International Data Week 2018 (IDW 2018) will be held on 5-8 November 2018 in Gaborone, Botswana. Hosted by the Botswana Open Science and Open Data Forum, IDW 2018 will bring together data scientists, researchers, industry leaders, entrepreneurs, policymakers and data stewards from all disciplines and geographies across the globe.

Open Data principles and standards do not only make information more easy to find and accessible on the user-end, but are also critical for machines to be able to read and understand the information. The Land Portal Foundation is an online resource that directs users to the great variety of sources that publish land related data and information online.

Call for applications to participate in the MOOC are open until 17 Sep 2018.

FIG Working Week is an exciting week-long conference that brings the international community of surveying and spatial professionals together to discuss key challenges of our time within the surveying profession with fellow peers. With the theme

Availability of accurate and up to date data and information on land rights, tenures and administration as well as on different land use, such as agriculture, forestry, mining, wildlife, water, housing and infrastructure, is critical to effective land governance and crucial for planning and managing the use of land and land-based resources.

There is no doubt the Global Data Revolution has reached the land sector. Government data portals, open access academic journals, community mapping initiatives and other citizen-generated data - there is a palpable positive drive across the world that allows processes such as data collection to be more inclusive and open.

You are invited to join a lively festival devoted to building an open data community in East Africa and making the linkages between open data and land on May 8th from 5PM-9PM at IHUB.

This festival aims bring together local open data aficionados together with l experts from East Africa and beyond as well as international partners.