“Mainstreaming of the National Land Consolidation Programme (MAINLAND)”

General

The MAINLAND project is supporting the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Economy (MAFWE) to build technical and administrative capacity to implement the National Land Consolidation Programme and the provisions of the National Land Consolidation Strategy adopted by the Government in 2012 for mainstreaming the National Land Consolidation Programme through (i) developing expertise and strengthening the land consolidation capacities of local stakeholders, (ii) raising public awareness about the benefits of land consolidation; and (iii) implementing the first round of land consolidation projects. The proposed approach to land consolidation is integrated, combining activities addressing small holding sizes and reducing land fragmentation with other local rural development needs, such as design and construction of new agricultural infrastructure, while preserving the environment. In supporting the land consolidation programme FAO respects a few key principles: respect all legitimate tenure rights (not just formally registered ownership rights); include safeguards – participatory process, fair valuation and accessible options for appeal; and the cornerstone principle that participants should be as well off after the project as before.