Discover hidden stories and unheard voices on land governance issues from around the world. This is where the Land Portal community shares activities, experiences, challenges and successes.
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This article focuses on the critical importance of secure land tenure for both local and foreign investment, particularly in the Sub-Saharan African region, with Ghana as a case study. It emphasizes the positive impact of land tenure security on credit use, collateral value, efficient land transfer, reduced disputes, and increased productivity. Despite various challenges in Ghana's land sector, recent Supreme Court rulings on a generational land dispute involving the Numo Nmashie Family have far-reaching implications for land tenure security and investment in the country. The legal saga dates back to 1966 when the government acquired a significant land parcel, leading to a disputed Court of Appeal decision in 1982. The recent Supreme Court ruling overturned this decision, highlighting fraudulent information and directing the Lands Commission to rectify registrations. The consequences of this ruling are multifaceted and include tenure insecurity, tenancy transitions, legal obligations, the possibility of evictions or negotiations, financial obligations, investment caution, economic impact, legal challenges, disputes, community and social impact, and the potential need for government intervention and regulation. With emphasis on wide-ranging implications for existing tenants, residents, businesses, and the broader socio-economic landscape, the article underscores the need for careful consideration of legal and economic aspects in navigating the aftermath of the Supreme Court ruling.
A selection and review of readings that shed light on the role that open land data can play in equitable and sustainable development, and social justice.
Is climate change really the driver of conflict and displacement across the Sahel? This data story explores the history of conflicts in the region, the overlap with climate events and a wide range of institutional factors to investigate this question. The cases of Mali, Burkina Faso and Somalia are used as examples.
Climate-change induced disasters and communities’ responses to protect themselves and design solutions have become a top priority on the climate agenda. At the center of mitigation and adaptation discussions have been urban populations, particularly in informal settlements. At the same time, the rural poor with limited or no secure access to land tend to be overlooked. Not only are peasants among the most vulnerable to the impact of floods, droughts, storms, or wildfires. Because of insecure tenure rights in this group, natural disasters often result in land loss and migration as families have little means to reclaim their land or property without records or formal registration documents. Moreover, insecure land rights provide little incentives or capacities to mitigate or adapt to the effects of climate change. People are less likely to plant trees or protect the forest if they fear that their land could be taken at any time. Protecting people’s land rights likely leads to long-term investments in land and may help to combat deforestation.
Under the umbrella of the Land Dialogues series, the third webinar of this year’s series “Climate Funding and COP28 : Turning Pledges into Action” took place on November 28th, 2023. The webinar drew in a little under 200 participants and featured panelists from Indigenous leaders to donors. The series is organized by a consortium of organizations, including the Land Portal Foundation, the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the Ford Foundation and the Tenure Facility.
On the opening day of #COP28, we hosted a webinar, “Building Climate Resilience through Inclusive Land Governance,” that delved into the crucial role which inclusive land governance plays in building climate resilience.
Two years after international donors pledged $1.7 billion to Indigenous Peoples at COP26, a recognition of their crucial role in protecting biodiversity and carbon capture, there has been good progress in preparing the systems needed for the money to be disbursed.
Nature-based emission-reduction projects are considered as key for development of a carbon market, which will be worth an estimated $50 billion USD by 2030. Yet, these carbon offsetting projects continue to be the target of criticism for their lack of certainty, transparency, accessibility, equitability, and quality.
Since engaging in WOLTS training, gender and land champion Sindooi is actively supporting women and widows' inheritance rights in her community.
In a thought-provoking webinar moderated by Nolundi Luwaya, Director of the Land and Accountability Research Centre at the University of Cape Town, experts from across Africa convened to unravel the complexities of the role of traditional authorities in land-based investment governance. This event brought to light the unique challenges and strategies employed by traditional authorities in managing land-based investments.
Has land formalization - as a type of land reform - delivered on the promises of improving tenure security, agricultural productivity and women's land access? Learn more in this data story.
RRI is excited to announce the launch of its new online Tenure Tool. This platform, hosted on RRI’s website, will give rightsholders, researchers, activists, policymakers, and the public free and easy access to qualitative and quantitative data on the forest tenure rights of Indigenous Peoples, Afro-descendant Peoples, local communities, and the women within those communities.
The Tenure Tool houses the largest and most comprehensive dataset to date on Indigenous, Afro-descendant, and local communities’ forest tenure rights, drawing on longitudinal data sets maintained and regularly updated by RRI.