This article examines the evolution of policy recommendations concerning rural land issues since the formulation of the World Bank’s “Land Reform Policy Paper” in 1975. That paper set out three guiding principles: the desirability of owner-operated family farms; the need for markets to permit land to be transferred to more productive users; and the importance of an egalitarian asset distribution.

The report is structured into nine chapters and an appendix:

The colonial and postcolonial legacy of the “Lost Counties” land issue has recently resurfaced as a contentious ethno-political issue in Uganda. The aim of the paper is to critically examine the politics of belonging and land rights in relation to Ugandan land legislation and the “Lost Counties” issue. The empirically basis of this paper is primarily derived from field work in Kibaale District, during the period January to July 2004.

A guide to a report from the World Bank’s Agriculture and Rural Development Department which is likely to prove extremely helpful to practitioners. The structure of the report is first given in detail to illustrate its coverage. This is followed by a section which gathers together some of its contents and conclusions, interspersed with comments.

“Land registration and cadastral surveying in much of the developing world has reached a crossroads. It is not possible to continue with business as usual in the face of massive informality within the world's cities, and new more relevant approaches have to be developed”. (Fourie, 2000).

This project is a component of the project “Piloting of Local Administration of Records - PILAR”, undertaken by the Association for Rural Advancement (AFRA). AFRA is an independent land rights NGO that aims to redress past injustices, to secure tenure for all and to improve the quality of life and livelihoods of the rural poor. Pilar’s main objective is to assist the people of Ekuthuleni obtain legal, affordable and accessible land records in order to improve their tenure security and their access to credit and municipal services.

Contains background to the Acts; the Land Act – concentration of powers in the Ministry, the provisions for a market in land, women’s rights to land, conflict resolution; the Village Land Act – definition and registration of village land, registration and adjudication of customary rights, women’s rights, conflict resolution, the enabling legislation; if not this, then what?; what next?

"Article 1. Objectives of the Land Law:

The objectives of the Land Law are to determine the regime on the management, protection and use of land in order to ensure efficiency and conformity with [land-use] objectives1 and with laws and regulations[,] and to contribute to national socio-economic development as well as to the protection of the environment and national borders of the Lao People's Democratic Republic."

AFRA commissioned a research report to present and promote the positive potential of options available for stakeholders in resolving the issues currently impacting on Dukuduku Forest. Stakeholders are defined both as residents within the Forest and as key parties having a commitment to resolving the issues. This report is an executive summary of the full research report for key stakeholders.

The intention of this report is to present and promote the positive potential of options available for stakeholders both as residents within, and as key parties with a commitment to resolving the issues currently impacting on Dukuduku Forest.

Government is frequently charged with failing to finalise key policies relating to traditional authorities, for example, local government roles and functions, and communal land tenure. Whilst it is true that important issues remain unresolved, it is also true that the issues themselves are very complex and that some have become so politicised that rational debate is hindered. This section addresses some of these policy areas in a manner which hopefully enables rational debates and viable solutions.