International Institute for Environment and Development 
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Drylands Project Summary |
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Theme: Land rights and tenure Securing the Commons In much of Africa, rural populations depend on access to “common property resources” such as rangelands and forests. Securing local rights of access to such resources against encroachment by outsiders is key to protecting the livelihoods of local people. Over the past few years, IIED has worked to support and disseminate innovative ways of securing access to the commons. This entails working at the local, national and international level. At the local and national levels, we support the development of innovative tools to secure resource rights for vulnerable rural groups and communities, tailored to local circumstances. An example of such innovation is the signing of local conventions in many parts of rural West Africa. Local conventions are sets of rules negotiated and agreed by all the users of an area of land, with a view to regulating land/resource access and use and to clarifying the rights and responsibilities of the different stakeholders. Together with partners in countries like Senegal, Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, we support the development of innovative methodologies to accompany the negotiation of local conventions, and we promote exchange of experience among practitioners, so as to promote lesson learning and, ultimately, better practice. At the international level, we engage with policy debates through policy-oriented publications, through international workshops and through building networks and alliances in Africa and elsewhere. In 2004, for instance, IIED and Reconcile, a Kenyan NGO, held a workshop in Nakuru on “Securing the commons in an era of privatisation: Policy and legislative challenges”. The workshop brought together some 45 participants, mainly from East Africa and the Horn, but also from West and Southern Africa and from Europe. It took place within the context of a networking programme funded by the European Commission (Co-Govern). The workshop discussed the legislative challenges that need to be addressed in order to secure the communal rights of local resource users, at a time where many vocal actors see privatisation as the only way forward. The summary conclusions of the workshop were published as part of our “Securing the Commons” series - click here to download them. Copyright © 2005 International Institute for Environment and Development. |
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