Issues for thematic working group

Equitable and secure access to land is fundamental for the millions of rural people in developing countries who depend on agriculture for their livelihood. It is a critical economic resource with enormous political dimensions, defining power relations between and among individuals and social groups. It is a critical factor in the formation of individual and collective identity and in the organization of social, cultural and religious life.

Population growth, urbanization and the weakening of traditional land tenure institutions and systems are increasingly threatening poor people’s access to land and tenure security, escalating conflicts at the local/national level and even across countries. Furthermore, local and national dynamics shaping the access of poor people to land are not de-linked from broader processes and global factors. Trade regimes, global consumer- and corporate-driven food systems, increasing demand for bio-fuels, and such crises as climate change are creating greater competition for land and subsequently greater pressure on tenure systems. Due to the above, there is now strong global demand for land as opportunities for extracting value are driven up. The politically marginalized rural poor people are the first to suffer – from greater vulnerability and precariousness as they confront much more powerful interests.

In the face of current trends and new challenges which might lead to unprecedented changes in the rural spaces and, unless managed carefully, further threaten the land access and livelihoods of poor rural people, there is a growing urgency to address the land issues of poor rural people.

This urgency has been reflected in such global and regional efforts as the International Conference on Agrarian Reform and Rural Development and the pan-African land policy and land reform framework to assist African national governments to address the land issues which underpin the objectives of growth and poverty reduction. However, in order for these efforts to be pro-poor, it is essential that the perspectives and requirements of poor rural people inform policies, investments and programmes.

IFAD’s own draft policy on “Promoting Equitable Access to Land and Tenure Security for Rural Poverty Reduction” has been shared with the participants. It has a specific focus on land – farmland, wetlands, pastures and forests. IFAD is interested to receive feedback from the participants of the Forum on the policy. It is equally interested to hear from other rural producers’ organizations, especially of fisherfolk organizations, of the specific concerns of fishermen and coastal communities to be included in eventual policy work on natural resources and in the rural poverty report that the Fund is developing presently.

The deliberations of the working group will be introduced by representatives of the organizations participating at the Forum. In order to focus the discussion and draw policy and programmatic implications for IFAD in its partnerships with farmers organizations, the following sub-items have been identified as sub-topics:

• Evolving challenges in access to land and control of natural resources. Views by smallholder farmers and other small rural producers. Provision of concrete data and cases will be very important.
• Follow-up actions to ICARRD? Role of different actors, such as FOs, IFAD, FAO, ILC.
• The African Union/Economic Commission for Africa/African Development Bank initiative on a pan-African land policy framework. How could this be developed in consultation with FOs? Role of different actors, such as FOs, IFAD, FAO, the ILC.
• Feedback on IFAD’s Draft Policy on Promoting Equitable Access to Land and Tenure Security.