Summary of key issues

1
Summary of key issues

• Day 3

2
CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES AND THE WAY FORWARDS

• Have we come to terms with what might be a
  changing paradigm? what is the purpose of land
  reform? to respond to past injustices or current
  issues? to what extent is land tenure reform
  needed to change conditions so we can achieve
  goals which everyone wants?
• What might these groups of actors take on as
  roles?
• What is capacity of these groups to contribute
  both individuals and groups.
• Civil society and land users were emphasizing the
  need for leadership of the people living in the
  drylands.

3
Working Groups most important areas of action

• Ensure the governance system is accountable and
  assures equity
• Build an enabling environment for participation
• Ensure that overall policy framework is conducive
  to land tenure reform
• Build support services into drylands LT policies
• Look for sufficient financing
• Enable bottom-up processes to feed policy making

4
Factors to consider in policy development and
implementation

• Land issues have to be addressed in national
  priority setting need to raise this issue on
  the agenda but how do we adequately address the
  needs and interests of the powerless?
• How do we integrate the specific needs for land
  tenure in drylands in the existing policy
  frameworks? There is a need to recognize that
  policies do exist we need to think about
  revisions rather than separate acts for the
  drylands.
• Recognize multiple users and uses of drylands
  resources.
• Need to look at the existing power structures to
  understand e.g. why multiple user rights often
  cannot be implemented. The powerful have an
  interest in keeping the Status Quo and will
  sabotage change processes.

5
Factors to consider in policy development and
implementation

• What are the pros and cons of donor
  harmonization? It is synergetic but do we lose
  innovative projects?
• Do NGOs and Civil Society have adequate access to
  funding when most funds are channeled though
  government channels? What happens if government
  and NGOs do not have clearly separated roles? -
  same problem might apply for government agencies,
  departments dealing with land issues, which are
  not priority issues of many governments.
• There are donor programmes that specifically fund
  NGOs and civil society.
• Do we have enough money allocated to implement
  the policy? Government should commit money inform
  of budget allocation to the implementation.