This blog post from Transparency International and the Land Portal is a small preview of the discussion we're co-organizing at the World Bank Land Conference next month. The focus is on moving from awareness to action with strategies to secure land tenure and access, while scaling up initiatives, investments, and policy reforms for climate change mitigation and adaptation - including tools to monitor transparency and corruption. 

Grand corruption in land governance isn’t just about stolen property - it’s about stolen futures. 

When public land is quietly handed to private interests, entire communities are displaced, forests fall, and wealth concentrates in the hands of a few. At the heart of this crisis lies one constant: Corruption.

So, how do we fight back? Transparency isn’t just a buzzword - it’s a powerful, practical tool. Transparency is a fundamental principle and a condition for accountability and reform. The 2024 Corruption Perceptions Index made that crystal clear, spotlighting how corruption is stalling climate action. In this context, growing collaborations like with the Land Portal Foundation and tools like the State of Land Information (SOLI) Index, offer a clear path forward.

Here’s your step-by-step guide on how to ensure transparency in land governance and make it count in the fight against grand corruption.

Step 1: Understand the problem - Corruption thrives in the dark

Grand corruption in land governance thrives on secrecy and weak oversight. In countries like Cambodia, Brazil, and Ghana, there have been cases where powerful actors exploited legal loopholes and institutional gaps to quietly transfer land into private hands. This abuse of high-level power often involves organised schemes, untraceable deals, and restricted access to information - making it difficult for watchdogs, journalists, and communities to intervene. Despite its severe impact on public resources and human rights, grand corruption often goes unpunished. Tackling it demands transparency, strong legal frameworks, independent oversight, and an active civil society.

But the damage isn’t limited to people and institutions - it extends to the environment. These corrupt practices aren’t just displacing communities; they’re also devastating ecosystems. In Brazil, for example, land registries have been manipulated and court decisions sold to legitimise land grabbing in the Amazon, fuelling illegal deforestation and deepening public mistrust. Across contexts, deforestation becomes both a consequence and cover for corruption, with opaque land systems enabling elites to profit at the expense of forests and frontline communities.

Step 2: Use tools like the SOLI index to diagnose transparency gaps

The State of Land Information (SOLI) Index, developed by the Land Portal Foundation, evaluates how accessible and complete land-related data is in countries across Africa and Latin America. It looks at two key elements:

• Completeness: Does the government collect essential land data (ownership, tenure, use, value)?
• Openness: Is that data actually available online, free of charge, and easy to use?

The latest SOLI findings are sobering: in most countries, essential land data is missing or unpublished, creating a perfect storm for corruption. When compared with Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index, nearly 70% of 42 countries fall into a high-risk zone of both high perceived corruption and low land data transparency. This gap isn’t just technical - it’s a critical governance failure that enables grand corruption and blocks efforts to hold power to account.

Action tip: Use SOLI data to push governments toward full transparency. Start by asking:
“Where are our land records? Why aren’t they public?”

Step 3: Push for full - not partial transparency

A dense informal settlement borders a clean waterway and open land, highlighting urban expansion and inequality. Illustration: Yamrote Alemu

Publishing some land data isn’t enough. Corrupt actors thrive on partial transparency, where superficial reforms give the appearance of openness while the most important data stays hidden. To truly combat this, we need the interoperability of databases - for these systems to 'talk to each other' - so we can uncover and prevent corrupt schemes and practices.

To really fight corruption, we need open disclosure on:

• Ownership data (including beneficial ownership)
• Land transactions and concessions
• Zoning, valuation, and dispute records
• Customary land rights, including rights for Indigenous peoples and local communities, pastoral communities, and women
• Data on business lobbying and party financing
• Asset declarations (including information on land ownership)

Advocacy goal: Call for comprehensive, machine-readable, interoperable and simplified land data, not just bulky and highly technical reports on obscure government websites.

Step 4: Collaborate with platforms that drive change

The Land Portal Foundation is leading the charge in promoting open and inclusive land data ecosystems. Through tools like the SOLI Index and partnerships with civil society and government actors, they are building the transparency infrastructure we need.

They also provide:

• Open-access datasets
• Research and country profiles
• Tools for monitoring and advocacy

Get involved: Partner with Land Portal to audit your country’s transparency levels, build public dashboards, or join coalitions demanding better land governance.

Step 5: Make land data work for people

A bustling urban market street contrasts with modern high-rises, illustrating the divide in city development. Illustration: Yamrote Alemu

Even when land data exists, it’s often inaccessible to those who need it most - rural communities, Indigenous peoples, women, people with disabilities, whistleblowers and land rights defenders. Barriers such as limited internet access, illiteracy, and lack of accessible formats further exclude these groups. Transparency must be inclusive.

Best practices:

• Translate data into local languages
• Use offline tools and radio to reach disconnected areas
• Work with community paralegals and local media to interpret records
• Build mobile-friendly platforms for land information

Remember: Transparency is only powerful if people can actually use it.

Step 6: Connect the dots - Transparency is an anti-corruption strategy

TI’s working paper makes it clear: Transparency is a strategic entry point for fighting grand corruption in the land sector.

But transparency alone isn’t enough. It must be paired with:

• Strong laws
• Independent oversight institutions
• A free press
• Active civil society

To tackle land corruption, governments need to close legal loopholes, align laws, and make sure land agencies are clear on their roles and properly resourced. Just as importantly, they must include Indigenous Peoples, women, and other marginalised groups in decision-making - and back it all up with real enforcement, strong sanctions, and international cooperation.

Final takeaway

A modern skyline grows under the setting sun, symbolising rapid urbanisation and the changing face of the city. Illustration: Yamrote Alemu

Fighting grand corruption in land governance isn’t about waiting for the perfect reform - it’s about using the tools we have now. Transparency is a strong weapon, and with allies like the Land Portal Foundation and tools like the SOLI Index, we’re better equipped than ever.

Join the movement. Demand open land data. Push for real transparency and accountability and protect the land and lives it sustains.

Follow discussions at the 2025 World Bank Land Conference, taking place from 5-8 May. The focus is on moving from awareness to action with strategies to secure land tenure and access, while scaling up initiatives, investments, and policy reforms for climate change mitigation and adaptation - including tools to monitor transparency and corruption.

Illustrations by Yamrote Alemu, piece co-authored by Transparency International and the Land Portal teams.*