Land Policy 2010

INTRODUCTION

What is land policy?

A policy is a plan of action to guide decisions and actions. Policies can be understood
as political, management, financial and administrative mechanisms arranged to reach explicit
goals. Public policy is a course of action to address specific problems like critical land issues.
Public policy is expressed in the body of laws, regulations, decisions and actions of
government. The policy cycle includes the following stages:
 Agenda setting
 Policy formulation
 Decision making
 Policy implementation
 Policy evaluation

Land is a key asset for the urban and rural population. It can be considered as
enabling infrastructure for sustainable development. This module Land Policy aims to
illustrate some general principles for discussing and formulating such policy in specific
country settings, summarize key insight from practical experience and research and highlight
the importance of careful and nuanced policy advice.

Land Policies are of fundamental importance to sustainable growth, good governance,

and the well being of and the economic opportunities open to the rural and urban population.
Therefore, analysis of specific interventions relating to land is being more and more of
interest to governments in reform processes and international development organizations.
Discussions on land policy should be characterized by careful analysis of the potential
contribution of land policies to the broader reform process for development, the scope of
interventions in the area, and the mechanism that can be used to achieve broader economic
and social goals in order to use land policy as catalyst for the envisioned change.

Land Policy provides a foundation for economic activity and the functioning of market
(for example, credit) and non-market institutions (for instance, local governments and social
networks)in many developing countries. Given this importance, institutions dealing with land
have evolved over long periods, and land policies will invariably be affected by the presence
of multiple market imperfections. Policy advice that is oblivious of either the complexity of
these issues or the historical and political repercussions of policy interventions in this area can
lead to unintended negative consequences. Experience has long pointed to the need for a
careful and differentiated approach as a precondition for making clear policy
recommendations in relation to land that can help improve both efficiency and equity.

A land policy, which is rational and transparent to the population, must meet particular
requirements. It should be based on fundamental guiding principles; it must follow clearly
defined, in part universal and in part country-region-or group-specific valid objectives. Its
target conflicts must be made public.

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A bundle of far-reaching non-contradictory land policy instruments should be

developed from them. The instruments’ direct and indirect effects should be recognized as
comprehensively as possible.

International cooperation, internal and external dialogue can be an important

contribution to the formulation of policies and it can reduce the danger of policy failure along
with the negative effects on economic efficiency, social equality and preserving the natural
environment. International cooperation and networks can support approaches to reform
processes especially when they are contributing to the implementation of international
conventions and the UN development principles sustainable development of good
governance, democratic development, rule of law, people’s participation and poverty
reduction.

Critical issues affecting land resources

A land policy has to be formulated to address the critical issues of land administration,
access to land, land use planning, restitution of historical injustices, environmental
degradation, conflicts, unplanned proliferation of informal urban settlements, outdated legal
framework, institutional framework and information management. It also addresses
constitutional issues, such as the eminent domain and the power structures as well as tenure. It
recognizes the need for security of tenure for all (all socio-economic groups, women, pastoral
communities, informal settlement residents and other marginalized
groups) and fair access to land.

Land Policy in Different Regional Context

Land issues in Asia:

Nearly 70 percent of rural household income in Asia comes from farming (Reardon et
al. 2000). Agriculture contributes significantly to GDP in the region and remains an
important source of employment. In Asia access to land is an important determinant of
economic growth and poverty reduction and landlessness across the region is a typical
indicator of poverty. Lack of access to land is a critical issue throughout much of Asia.

In South and in some parts of South East Asia numerous attempts have been made to
introduce land reforms through legislation. This has sought to establish land ceilings and in
some cases redistribute surplus land. In the early part of the 20th century land reforms in
Japan, Taiwan and Korea abolished feudal production systems and created new smallholder
based agrarian economies providing an effective foundation for growth. More recently, in
India, Bangladesh and Pakistan bureaucratic inertia and political opposition have in most
cases prevented widespread successful implementation of land reforms as a means to improve
poor people’s access to land.

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In India, tenancy reform and the abolition of intermediary landlords were found to
have the strongest effect in reducing rural poverty. In West Bengal, land reforms have
contributed to enhancing the bargaining power of agricultural laborers with their employers
(Sengupta and Gazdar 1997) while a take-off in agricultural productivity and rural poverty
reduction in the 1980s appears to have resulted from a combination of factors including
agrarian reforms, technological innovation and the emergence of market incentives for small
farmers. Evidence from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Vietnam shows that redistribution of land
by itself is often not enough, and that for redistribution to have a beneficial impact in these
countries, improved access to water, credit and other farm inputs is also essential.

Current World Bank policy on land in Asia emphasizes strengthening modern systems
of property law and in particular improving land administration, to stimulate the land market
by reducing transaction costs – so that the poor can benefit from security of title. Since the
1990s both Vietnam and China have granted individual households secure long-term use
rights over land following the abandonment of collectivized farming methods and centralized
state controls. This has been a major factor in bringing about dramatic increases in
agricultural productivity and poverty reduction.

The present legal framework and systems for registration and titling in most Asian
countries, however, are riddled with legal ambiguities, inconsistencies, corruption, policy
confusion and resource and capacity constraints, especially amongst the lower bureaucracy.
In most cases current systems provide officials with vast rent-seeking opportunities, and this
provides an enduring incentive for local officials to obstruct reforms. The legal systems in
much of Asia are also overwhelmed by land disputes. Research from Orissa and Bangladesh
shows that improving the governance of land, through better land registration, effective
taxation and better access to information is critical to improving poor people’s access to land.
The dysfunctional land administration system in Bangladesh is a major source of inefficiency
in the land market, and improvements are needed to reduce the costs of land transactions and
as a basis for effective land redistribution.

The case for addressing gender inequalities in land access is extremely strong given
the growing feminization of agriculture in Asia. 86 percent of all rural female workers are in
agriculture in India but they rarely hold titles to the land they cultivate. A large percentage of
rural households in Asia are de facto female-headed due to widowhood, marital breakdown or
male out-migration. Most self-employed rural women are unwaged workers on male-owned
family farms. Although women’s equal rights to land have been enshrined in law in most
parts of South and South East Asia, social recognition and legal enforcement of women’s
rights remain major challenges. Difficulties are particularly acute for women who are
divorced, separated or widowed.

“Horizontal” inequality between different social groups is a cause of conflict in Asia.

Inequality in access to land and resources has been a factor in social conflicts in various
islands of Indonesia – arising from the transmigration of Javanese settlers, and exploitation of
customarily owned forests – as well as in Nepal and Kyrgyzstan.

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Land issues in Sub-Saharan Africa:

Land tenure in Africa is characterized by the persistent prevalence of customary

systems of land management and customary rights, embedded in culture and social practice.
These have changed over time and in many cases were used by colonial governments as a
basis for political administration, under the recognized authority of customary chiefs.
Customary systems are based in kinship and have secure, hereditary usufruct rights as a
central principle. Over time these rights have been consolidated, with rights to agricultural
plots tending to become more individualized, especially under conditions of population
growth. Customary tenure systems permit a wide range of mechanisms for people to access
and transact in land. The result is that they support a range of derived or secondary rights,
not only within the household but also, and most evidently in West Africa, across wider
communities and between distinct social groups. Such rights include grazing, manuring
contracts between farmers and pastoralists sharecropping, and arrangements for land loans,
rental and forms of mortgage.

The legal consequences of colonial rule have been the co-existence of formal private
property rights, on the European model established in towns, cities and rural areas where land
was removed from indigenous control and occupied by commercial farm enterprises.
Following independence many countries nationalized land, leaving customary farmers with
insecure rights, although many countries also retained imported freehold and leasehold
property rights, notably in urban areas and in the commercial farming areas of southern Africa
which remained largely under the control of former colonial settlers. As a consequence, most
African countries now have pluralistic tenure systems in which conflicting land claims and
allocations are frequently made, according to parallel systems of customary and statutory law.
One response, typified by Kenya’s experience but also in other countries, has been the
attempted replacement of customary tenure by formal regimes, through programmes of
individual registration and titling. These have generally failed proving culturally and socially
inappropriate, and land registers have been difficult to maintain, since customary norms and
practices have proved remarkably persistent as an everyday basis for land allocation, transfer
and inheritance. Land titling has often undermined established land rights, especially multiple
and subsidiary rights, while consolidating those of registered owners. It has proved a highly
expensive, endeavor, difficult to sustain in most of Africa. Imported formal property rights
have also failed to deal with the common property resources which support livestock grazing
and the harvesting of wildlife, bush products and aquatic resources fundamental to African
tenure and livelihood systems. Although innovative solutions, such as the CAMPFIRE
program in Zimbabwe, and Conventions Locales for natural resources management in West
Africa have tried to address these problems, with some success, they have fallen short of
granting secure proprietary resource rights to the communities involved.

A further problem, characteristic of the former colonial settled economies of southern

Africa, notably South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia, is the highly unequal and racially
skewed land distribution between the commercial and the so-called communal areas. The
African farmers were historically restricted to the communal areas under the administration of
customary chiefs. Today these suffer from serious problems of overcrowding, environmental
degradation, as well as appropriation of land by traditional leaders and local elites.

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Governments are attempting to deal with these problems through programmes of land
redistribution from whites to blacks. If these are to provide new livelihood opportunities for
the poor, donor funds are required to buy out landowners, and agricultural and food markets,
which have largely been supplied by the commercial sector, need to be maintained.
Agricultural support services also need to be provided systematically to new small-scale and
resettled communal farmers. Effective mobilization of appropriate technical expertise and
good cross-sectoral co-ordination are also critical factors.

Since the mid-1990s, many African countries have re-examined their land tenure
policies, and a variety of new tenure reforms are underway, aiming to recognize and in some
cases formalize established customary rights. In most cases efforts centre on the development
of new, decentralized bodies through which local communities and customary leaders are
involved alongside government officials in the management of land, land rights, and land
disputes. In some countries this is complemented by the devolution of authority and
responsibility for common property natural resources to community level. This type of
approach was pioneered earlier in Botswana and is being implemented in Benin, Burkina
Faso, Mali, Mozambique, Niger, Tanzania, and Uganda.

Contemporary debates on tenure reform and the role it can play in development and
poverty reduction strategies are marked by two further features; Re-assertion and contestation
of the role of traditional chiefs, for instance in South Africa, in circumstances where they may
be at risk of abusing their considerable powers as authorities over land allocation. In some
cases this role is favored, politically by the state.

Renewed demands for land titling from governments and national elites seeking to
acquire land for development, linked to an interest in attracting commercial investment and
modernizing agricultural production in the hope of competing more effectively in globalised
markets.

Land Issues in Latin America:

Inequality is marked throughout the Latin American region not only in terms of
incomes, but also of access to productive assets and services. Unequal access to land
between rich and poor in both urban and rural areas is an important factor in the persistence of
poverty, and may, in part, explain the region's relatively low levels of economic growth. On
the whole, Latin America is land abundant, a comparative advantage which could bring
significant returns if land were more equitably distributed.

In spite of high levels of urbanization, and fewer overall numbers than in Africa and
South Asia, poor people living in rural areas make up a large proportion of the poor as a
whole – over 60 percent in Mexico, Central America and Andean countries. Two thirds of the
rural poor are small farmers and the remainders of them are landless workers. Half have very
limited access to productive resources including land (IADB 1998). Historically, large-scale
agribusiness has come to dominate agricultural production in many countries, which is a
situation maintained by the contemporary policy environment. Nevertheless, much large-
scale land holding remains unproductive, inefficient and speculative.

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There is a history of state-led redistributive land reform in the region, which has had
only limited success. Although access to land improved during the 20th century, land reforms
were not backed by policies for agrarian change or followed through by support for peasant
production and marketing. As a result it has been difficult for the poor to establish sustainable
livelihoods on the land.

A "new wave" of land policies in the region has focused on the market as the regulator
of land access. One implication of these policies is that confirmation of secure rights for the
poor, through titling or other means, and land tenure regularization, has become extremely
important in both urban and rural areas. Much of the region suffers from inadequate and
outdated land administration systems, to which the poor have limited access. Weak
enforcement of poor people's land rights established in law has enabled irregular land
occupation and land concentration in the hands of powerful elites to continue. This is
exacerbated by political interference and corruption in land allocation, and by land
concentration in the hands of elite commercial and financial interests. As a result there have
been increases in rural landlessness and conflicts over indigenous claims and established
usufruct rights.

More progress has been made in securing land rights in urban areas, through
innovative programmes for tenure security and finance for neighborhood improvements, for
example in Brazil, Peru, Guatemala and Ecuador. Nevertheless the pace of urban growth and
migration still leaves millions of urban poor in unsafe, insecure urban settlements without
access to basic services. Tenure security and regularization has been a key ingredient in slum
upgrading and the provision of basic services for the poor.

Another feature of contemporary land policies in Latin America is the attempt to use
the market, rather than the state as the means of land reform. Market-led approaches to land
reform, whereby groups of self-selected beneficiaries receive subsidized credit and grant aid
to purchase land and establish new settlements, have been piloted in Brazil and Columbia and
actively promoted by the World Bank. Although these approaches show some promise, they
have proved controversial and so far without demonstrable impacts on poverty and inequality.
Since the schemes rely on land purchase they require own financial contributions and the
raising of loans by the beneficiaries, and so are not designed to meet the needs of the very
poor. Distortions and structural inequalities beset both land and agricultural markets in much
of Latin America, and generally states have failed to establish the conditions for transparent
fair and efficient land markets. A key underlying problem, as with earlier state led attempts at
redistribution, has been the absence of wider, well coordinated programmes of agrarian
reform and change capable of improving access to markets and credit, in addition to access to
land for smallholder farmers and the rural poor.

In Brazil dialogue between government, civil society, finance institutions and donors
has been weak on land and agrarian reform. There has been more progress in Bolivia
however, where efforts are underway to renew earlier land reforms and harmonize the
multiple objectives of land policy to enable investment and a formalize land market, promote
an equitable land structure, and promote sustainable natural resource use.

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A significant challenge for continuing land reform in Latin America will be the
establishment of municipal and local land and agrarian reform processes in the context of
current programmes of decentralization.

Land issues in Eastern Europe and Central Asia:

The break-up of the Soviet Union and the political changes in the countries of the
former Warsaw Pact initiated a wave of reform directed towards privatization of land and
other assets previously owned by the state, and a liberalization of markets.

In the former Soviet Union countries, land reform has followed different pathways and
has proceeded at different rates. However, a common feature is the recognition that workers
and pensioners on former state and collective farms have entitlements to farmland and
property, and that reform involves the distribution of these entitlements among shareholders.

In Russia and Ukraine large farm units have generally been retained, and privatization
has involved the distribution of land and property shares to those entitled, recorded with
certificates conveying rights of ownership. Land and property shareholders lease their shares
back to the farm in exchange for farm produce, agricultural inputs, or services that were
previously provided by the collective. Although landholders have the constitutional right to
withdraw their land share from the farm, delays in passage of facilitating legislation, and in
formal titling and physical delineation of plots, have prevented this in practice. Key issues
for rural people, and particularly the rural poor, are the creation of awareness of their rights
and of the options available to exercise and protect them, which include accessible
mechanisms for efficient low cost dispute resolution.

In Moldova, Armenia, Georgia and Kyrgyzstan, land reform has involved the physical
break up of farms and the distribution of small land plots to individual shareholders. Some
redistribution has taken place through leasing, but the result has generally been fragmentation
and a large number of smallholdings with variable economic viability. In the countries of
central and eastern Europe and the Balkans (except Albania), restitution of land titles to those
who owned land prior to 1940, or to their descendants, has been a major feature of the land
reforms carried out in the 1990s. In many cases restitution has led to a fragmented pattern of
land holdings. As a result consolidation of land is now the major issue and there is a debate as
to whether this should be a market-led process or whether it should take place as a
Government-led plan for the development of rural areas.

The development of a market in land is politically contentious issue across the region.
State bodies have previously played a key role in regulating land use, and much of the current
debate hinges on the extent of continued involvement by the State in land administration, and
the extent to which the land market can be governed by supply and demand. The recent
Ukraine Land Code attempts to tread a middle path between these positions and includes a
five-year moratorium on land sales. In Kyrgyzstan a moratorium on land sales has recently
(September 2001) been lifted? In Russia the issue of transactions in agricultural land was
excluded from the Land Code and has yet to be resolved. Ensuring a fair deal for the rural

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poor when the next round of land distribution takes place will be a crucial determinant of the
impact of land reform on poverty reduction in the countries of the region.

Additional to their land share, the typical rural household has a private household plot
(PHP). With the collapse of many employment opportunities and limited alternative income
generating opportunities, PHPs play an extremely important role in supporting rural
livelihoods, both in terms of household food security and generation of income from sales of
surpluses. PHPs are now the major suppliers of potatoes, vegetables and milk in Russia and
Ukraine. Ukraine’s Land Code, and by-laws in some Russian areas, permit plot-holders to
add their land share to their private plot.

Land Issues in the Philippines:

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OBJECTIVE OF LAND POLICY

Importance of land policy

Three main super ordinate objectives are the guiding minimum necessary for a land
policy. However, each country will have a different emphasis based on its situation.
Efficiency and promotion of economic development,
Equality and social justice and
Environmental preservation and a sustainable pattern of land use.

Many land policy approaches and instruments are required to reach the objective.
They primarily belong to the field of policy systems. The stake holders should work out and
examine the approaches with respect to urgency, consistency and conflict risks. The following
list of starting points is open-ended and requires supplementation or amendment:
 Develop a uniform legal and regulatory framework providing equal access to and use
of land for all private and legal persons, collectives and the state;
 Decide precisely between private contract law (civil law) and public law (e.g. land
transaction);
 Generate clear responsibilities and liability regulations for private and public persons;
 Improve the efficiency of land and tenancy markets;
 Allow for sectoral changes (industrialization and multiple employment) through land
policies and anticipation of new land functions (environmental and recreational value,
etc.):
 Create legal and institutional structures for land banking, land use planning including
expropriation (serve the public weal);
 Secure the financial base for public land administration;
 Make certain that land is easily transferable provided no transition regulations require
temporary restrictions (e.g. in the case of land reform);
 Land tenure reforms should not only be utilized as a threat, but implemented
consequently when they are seen as necessary due to extremely unequal distribution of
land.

The objective to contribute to equity objective through land policies and to promote
social stability involves controversial decisions. Thus, the question is whether the social
responsibility of property is recognized by the constitution or laws. Dealings with conflicts in
interest between urban and rural; “modern” and “traditional”; and wealthy and poor
population groups is necessary. The following are important aspects for this:

 Recognition of the importance of land as the basis for employment and income in rural
and urban areas;

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 Analysis of the current and future importance of land for social security (old age and
illness);
 Recognition and consideration of traditional, autochthonous and secondary rights
including those of ethic minorities within a state land policy for all persons;
 Consistent policies with respect to the future role of local land tenure authorities;
 Regulation (temporarily) of land transactions in specific sectors (“ceilings” for the sale
and leasing of land after land reforms and in settlement programs or pre-emptive rights
in favor of smallholders);
 Approaches for creating legal security for informal settlements;
 Promotional programs for disadvantaged groups such as the landless and women, if
necessary, including land tenure reforms primarily for the redistribution of land and
land management reforms for an increase in productivity.

Land policy is increasingly also becoming part of environmental policy. It is an

approach for maintaining the natural production potential and for prompting sustainable land
use.
 A comprehensive code on land use (or land use policy) is demanded by many
countries. However, this has only been rarely realized;
 Land use planning and land banking aid in the declaration of protected areas;
 Elaboration of participatory, environmentally sustainable local land use concepts for
communal resources;
 The efficient coordination of varying administrations and institutions is another aspect
of the objective.

Models and principles can be read in and derived from the UN conferences on
sustainable development, the Charta of Human Rights, the structures of existing societies’
systems, the National Strategic Plans for Poverty Reduction (NRSP), the written constitution
(strengthening of important social groups, protection for minorities and equality for all people
before the law) and the economic order (market economy and the meaning of property).
A land policy which is designed for stability and to create trust must at least fulfill the
following :
 It should be long-term-oriented and secure from influences and strategic behavior of
politicians prior to elections;
 It conveys a vision of the path desirable for development;
 It should employ democratic rules to control power (rule of law and law enforcement,
participation and transparency) and thus avoid land related corruption, land
concentration and land crabbing;
 It should be based on and tied to successful practices and existing socially and
culturally accepted systems and expectations;
 It should focus on an evolutionary process of change that supplants social upheaval;
 It should include intensive government-citizen dialogue and dialogue within the civil
society;
Box 2:
Namibia : Outline of a national land policy
Fundamental Principles :
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· equality before the law,

· a mixed economy based on several forms of ownership,
· a unitary land system, in which all citizens have equal rights, opportunities and
security across a range of tenure and management systems,
· a focus on the poor,
· the rights of women,
· security and protection to all legally held land rights, regardless of the form of tenure
or the income, gender or race of the right holder,
· public accountability and transparency.
(Govt. of Namibia 1996)
Land policy models are controversial and differ for various cultures, religions and
political systems. Discussions between the partners about these models in the policy dialogue
or in national forum discussions are necessary:

The rule of law does not necessarily mean equality of all people before the law in
every country or equal opportunity for men and women to the access to land and its use.
A countrywide binding, uniform system of land tenure based on the monopoly of power held
by the state is often incompatible with indigenous regulations governing the access to and
distribution of land.

The deliberate promotion of groups which are seen as being at a disadvantage by the
international development cooperation such as the landless poor and women through land
policy is not necessarily desired socio-politically nor can they be politically implemented
(yet) in every society.

Internal and external dialogue should help to clarify when and to what extent an active
land policy is required:

 during political transformation processes (e.g. East Germany, in the states of former,
Soviet Union , Vietnam, Angola...)
 in the case of land reform (Philippines, Brazil, South Africa, Namibia...)
 in the case of far-reaching market economy reforms
 in post-conflict countries (e.g. Cambodia, East Timor, Mozambique, Guatemala...)
 in countries with far-reaching institutional reforms, decentralization and de-
concentration (Indonesia, Ghana...)

If, however, a consistent and recognized system and an effective land administration
exist, then the chance exists for the involved parties to legally make private contracts of
various sorts themselves on transparent land and lease markets (the state, however, is one of
many participants in the market). Since the results of these land tenure agreements do not
necessarily conform to the society’s objectives if they enable land concentration or accelerate
the rate of environmental destruction, then the government should not leave everything to the

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forces of the market. The government should intervene in the land policy and at least set a
binding framework.

Land Policy Principles

Land Policy Principles are addressing the essential values, which the society seeks to
promote and preserve. The principles are drawn from various sources including international
conventions. They include:
 Equitable access to land;
 Secure land ownership;
 Effective regulation of land development;
 Sustainable land use;
 Access to land information;
 Efficient land management;
 Vibrant land markets; and
 Good Land governance. (Transparent and democratic administration of land)

Guiding Values of the Policy Formulation Process are

 Consultative;
 Participatory;
 Interactive;
 Inclusive;
 Consensus building;
 Timely and professional;
 Transparent;
 Gender sensitive;
 Innovative; and
 Cost effective.

Linking land policy with other important policy areas

Land tenure is at the heart of a number of rural development issues. Access to land is
linked to some basic economic and social human rights, such as the right to food. Land tenure
has strong linkages to poverty reduction and food security, economic development, public
administration and local government, private contract law, family and inheritance law and
environmental law (to mention but a few). Given the far reaching consequences of land policy
reform, an explicitly multi-disciplinary approach is required to ensure that the varied
implications of reform programmes are well understood and that the needs of different
stakeholder groups, in particular the poor and vulnerable, can be effectively accommodated.

Land policy and poverty reduction

The majority of poor people in developing countries still live in rural areas despite
growing urbanization. Secured and increased access to land and natural resources for the
landless and land-poor families is a key means of achieving food security and broadening the

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economic opportunities available to them. Depending on contexts, it may imply land

redistribution, local rights registration, regulations in land markets and protection against land
grabbing. However, improved access to land alone is not enough to improve rural livelihoods;
reforms must be supported by adequate accompanying policies and related measures (access
to credit and information, markets, agricultural extension, favorable economic environment).
Legislation all too often hands control over land and other natural resources to government
bodies such as forest departments. Acknowledgement that rural people need to have rights to
control and manage their territory is a way of guaranteeing their access to these key resources,
which they have helped to maintain and preserve. Common property resources are of
particular importance to the incomes of poorer groups. Where such rights are clearly
recognized and enforced, this control over local resources and their associated economic
opportunities contribute to further sustainable management and improved rural livelihoods

Land Policy and National Poverty Reduction Strategy

The principles of a NPRS are to (a) maintain macroeconomic stability, (b) improve rural
livelihood, (c) expand job opportunities, (d) improve capabilities, (e) improve governance and
strengthen institutions, (f) reduce vulnerability, (g) promote gender equity, (h) priority focus on
population.
(case study Cambodia).

Land policy, citizenship, human rights and social justice

Land tenure structures mirror the distribution of power within society, and reflect the
social relations between rural people, other sectors of the population and the state, and social
relations within households and rural society itself. While access to land is not recognized as a
human right as such, it may be considered as a means to achieve fundamental human rights,
as defined by international conventions. Common property resources refer to land or other
natural resources held in common by a group of people such as a village or a community.
Group members normally have defined use rights to the resource and individual members
cannot appropriate it individually. Community rules allow the group to exclude non-members
from using the resource or determine the rules under which they are allowed to access it.

The case of indigenous people and some minority groups illustrates how, in many
countries, land rights are closely related to the fundamental rights of citizens. Most indigenous
groups have culturally distinctive land tenure regimes based on collective rights to lands and
territories. Consequently, some countries’ laws and constitutions, as well as certain
international laws and jurisprudence, recognize these peoples’ rights to their lands (including
customary use or occupation) as inherent, based on “aboriginal title” or “immemorial
possession”. However, effective recognition of these rights is often incomplete, leading to
social and political marginalization, and land conflicts. Mechanisms for securing indigenous
peoples’ rights to their lands are thus important for their cultural survival and for promoting
equity and protecting their immediate environment. Ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities
other than indigenous peoples and minority groups may also experience similar situations.

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Access to fair legal process represents a legitimate expectation associated with

citizenship, yet in many countries people are unable to gain protection of their rights and
assets under the law. Democratic states need to guarantee the rights and assets of every
citizen, even the poorest. This may imply the need for innovative legal frameworks to ensure
the law is accessible to poor farmers, indigenous people and vulnerable groups, and that their
rights are fairly taken into account. Land rights can be secured in a sustainable way only
where women and the poor enjoy basic civil and political rights including freedom of
expression and independent media.

Land policy and gender equality

Equal rights for both women and men to hold and use property are a cornerstone of
social and economic gender equality. Women’s rights require strengthening under both formal
and informal systems of tenure, and constitutional and inheritance law has a role to play
alongside land law and institutions. The main legal requirements are to establish women’s
rights to hold property and recognition of the principle of spousal co-ownership of land. These
are important factors in women’s economic and livelihood security, for instance in enabling
women to access credit and services which may require evidence of land ownership.

In practice women’s actual entitlements to land are often determined by inheritance

practices – whether or not surviving female spouses and daughters are allowed to inherit land,
and whether or not their rights are circumscribed by those of male relatives. This focuses
attention on the need for reform of inheritance laws. The case for addressing gender
inequalities in land access is particularly strong in Asia given the growing feminization of
agriculture, and in Africa where women have traditionally played the role of food producers.
Asian countries illustrate that legally recognized rights in land are not sufficient. The security
of women’s land rights depends on whether these rights are socially and legally recognizable
and enforceable. Legal and institutional action alone, however, is unlikely to be enough and
extension of women’s land rights is likely to be a long-term process. Cultural action, together
with advocacy and education in support of women’s land rights have an important role to
play, given the deep-rooted cultural norms and practices which underlie discrimination in land
tenure, particularly in the operation of customary tenure systems.

Land policy and agricultural development

Land policy has strong links with agricultural and economic policy. Making access to
land secure is a necessary condition for encouraging investment and improvement in land. An
agricultural policy that strongly supports family farming and farmers’ organizations, and
provides them with services offers a good way of reconciling growth in agricultural
productivity with equity and poverty reduction. But land issues are rarely the only limiting
factor in raising productivity. Reasonable crop prices, access to inputs, availability of credit,
and the organization of markets and processing are important features of the agricultural
sector. Working to improve these issues may be a priority before addressing land matters.
When there are significant imperfections in related markets (e.g. credit, labor, products),
liberalizing land markets will not improve efficiency and may be counterproductive, leading
to land concentration, exclusion of small farmers and less intensive practices.

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Land titling is not always the best way of increasing tenure security, and nor does it
automatically lead to greater investment and productivity. In many places, land is held
through unwritten, customary means, but it is not subject to insecurity. Formal credit may not
be available and much investment in land in small family farms is based on labor effort rather
than capital. The choice of land policy will have important implications for different types of
farmers. If, for example, policy aims to support small scale family farmers, it must provide
them with secure tenure.

Land policy, conflicts, and post-conflict recovery

Population growth, changing economic circumstances and changes to the environment

(e.g. desertification, climate change) can increase competition for access to land. Competition
is usually regulated by a society’s tenure rules, which have developed in response to shifts in
social, economic and political relationships. But this is not always the case. Conflict is likely
to grow where scarcity of resources is increasing and access is reduced, where tenure rules are
unable to adjust sufficiently rapidly to changing circumstances, and where different and
contradictory rules co-exist, allowing people to refer to one or the other depending on where
their interest lies. This is particularly the case where there is a large gap between customary or
smallholder tenure systems and formal law, when powerful new (often external) economic
interests start to invest in land, and where state institutions are unable to ensure a fair system
of regulation (rules, arbitration, etc.). Illegal appropriation of land by political elites and
forced displacement of rural dwellers (for example as a result of infrastructure development or
promotion of large-scale export-oriented farming) can also lead to land conflicts.

Resolution of conflicts over land raises questions of governance and social stability, as
well as of tenure security. Addressing conflicting claims will be a pre-requisite for any land
registration programme, to avoid repeated challenges and disputes. Frequently, formal conflict
resolution mechanisms are weak, overburdened, inaccessible to rural people, and have a poor
understanding of local land rights. There is growing appreciation of the need to recognize and
strengthen mechanisms for resolving disputes, using alternative dispute resolution techniques
that could be based on local structures and practices. The creation of specialized land
tribunals, as in the Philippines or Costa Rica, is increasingly being explored.

In those countries which have experienced armed conflict, civil war and major
displacement of populations, fair and just handling of land tenure questions will often be a
central component of any reconstruction exercise, both to maintain the peace and provide
conditions under which economic growth can be re-established. Major factors within such a
reconstruction programme are likely to include redefining the basis on which people can
claim rights over land, resolving disputes over land that has been abandoned or taken over by
others, and finding ways of providing secure rights for refugees in areas of new settlement as
well as security for local/customary rights and common property regimes. The case of
Cambodia provides a good example of how the resolution of land claims has supported post-
conflict recovery in rural areas.

Land policy and land administration systems

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Despite constitutional provisions, all citizens are not equal in practice before the law,
due to inadequate information, limited resources, and poor contacts within the administrative
system. If the poor majority is to be the primary beneficiaries of land tenure reform, the
design of institutions for managing land rights must take this into account. Poorer groups will
have more effective access to such procedures where they receive clear information about
how the system is meant to operate, and where the bodies responsible are located close by,
working in local languages, using standard units of measure, accepting oral evidence to
support claims, with proper attention paid to publicity of claims before granting title, and
operating with low user fees. Effective and responsive judicial and land administration
systems which are accessible to poor people and vulnerable groups are therefore crucial
components of successful, pro-poor land policy reform. Without such systems, the legality
and credibility of land policy reform and ultimately its success would be irremediably
undermined.

A land administration system is the set of structures and institutions which implement
the land policy, affect rights, deliver titles and deeds, and manage information systems. These
structures can be state or local government institutions. Sometimes, customary institutions
perform some land administration functions. Proximity, accessibility and accountability of
land administration institutions are key issues which are also relevant for traditional
authorities.

In many developing countries, there is a gap between formal and local land
administration systems. The formal land tenure system has thus limited legitimacy in the eyes
of local people because neither the rules (as outlined in statutory legislation) nor the structures
or procedures are seen as fitting in with customary or informal ways of managing land. In
other cases, gaps may exist between the law and the practices of land administration. The
operation of formal structures and procedures may be poorly understood, act along principles
which are alien to ordinary people, be subject to corrupt practices, and work in favor of a
small elite. As a result farmers cannot exercise their legitimate rights. Given the value of land,
the area of land administration provides fertile ground for corrupt practice and political
patronage, whether it be in allocating rights to one user rather than another, agreeing to a
change of use from farmland to building plot, or deciding in favor of a particular party in a
dispute over land claims.

Discretionary authority held by government officials, traditional authorities or elected

council members offers room for patronage and rent-seeking. Thus, the design of rules,
structures and procedures regarding land tenure must consider how best to minimize such
risks. This should be done by establishing checks and balances on how procedures are carried
out, through public scrutiny and information dissemination. Such checks will be easier where
everyone has information about, for example, the fee to be paid for a given service, and what
process needs to be followed. Good land administration practice, as in programmes carried
out recently in Central Thailand and in Guyana has sought to provide public access to
documents and meetings, ensure publicity about land claims prior to titling, and put in place
appeals systems to contest claims. All these are necessary features of a transparent process. At

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the least, an equitable system of land administration, whether or not it relies on customary
rules, must always include simple procedures for citizens to appeal against local decisions.

Land policy, local government and decentralization

Local governments usually have some power over the management of land and natural
resources. National land policy needs therefore to be consistent with the powers and
responsibility of local institutions, and local government must be involved in the design of
land policies.

Decentralization offers a valuable opportunity for shifting towards greater local

management of land, bringing resolution of disputes much closer to local stakeholders, and
ensuring closer scrutiny of how land and the revenues stemming from it are managed.
However, there is also the risk that decentralization will bring a greater politicization of land
issues, and strengthen the powers of local elite over natural resources. Moving towards more
decentralized systems of government thus opens up new ways for land and resources to be
managed, but it does not necessarily provide immediate answers to questions of
accountability, or where power and decision-making should be located. The principle of
subsidiary should guide decisions over the distribution of responsibilities in the management
of land resources between central, local and communal levels, provided that it takes place
within a clear set of rules that prevents abuses of power, and includes procedures for appeal
and mechanisms for accountability.

Land policy and taxation

Land has long been considered a key source of revenue for local and national
government. Its immobility and visibility make it a particularly easy asset on which to impose
a levy, especially in urban areas. The introduction of trade liberalization has led to a
substantial fall for many governments in import and export duties, making land increasingly
attractive as a potential fiscal asset to meet broader fiscal policy objectives. Local land taxes
may be legitimate in the eyes of local people when they are accompanied by more effective
and secure rights and by effective provision of public services by the local government. Local
land taxes may be an important source of income for local governments.

The practicality of a rural land tax depends very much on context. Attention needs to
be paid to examining ways of classifying land according to quality and productivity, with each
class paying a different rate. The likely impacts of such a tax on production strategies and
levels of investment must also be considered. In marginal areas with low productivity, the
revenue that such a tax might reasonably generate could well be exceeded by the costs of
collection. In areas where land titling is underway, imposing a tax on titled land might be a
reasonable counterpart payment in return for the advantages conferred through titling. Such a
tax would also provide an incentive to put the land to effective use.

Overall, the design of a land taxation system must be coherent with poverty reduction
and social equity objectives. Land taxes should therefore be understood as a means to promote

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social and environmental objectives, discourage underutilization of land and prevent land
speculation.

Land policy and environment

Land provides for a range of ecological services which a sound land policy can
contribute to enhance: water retention, pollution mitigation, soil and coastal protection all
depend on the sustainable use of natural resources. Therefore, land policy has a role in
preventing environmental degradation and its social and economic costs. Clear and protected
rights, effective rules defining access and regulating use of land, water and other natural
resources are essential means of ensuring long-term management of land and resources.
Where they exist, customary and common property regimes may allow local land
management decisions to prioritize community needs, cultural values and long-term
environmental protection.

Certain areas within a country will need protection from use to conserve biological
diversity (wildlife, woodlands), reduce risks of erosion (steep slopes, river banks), and
provide common public spaces (parks, greenbelt land around cities). Such areas are usually
accorded special status by law, with controlled access and use rights.

Having followed a policy of strict exclusion in the past, governments are now
realizing the need for joint management of many protected areas, involving a collaborative
and participatory approach with rural people. Such arrangements usually establish shared
monetary benefits and certain use rights (such as collection of non-timber forest products,
grazing rights within game parks during certain seasons) in exchange for help in patrolling the
area against outside users, and poachers. Thus, the tenure status of protected areas will need to
accommodate rights of use for particular communities, conditional on their acceptance of
certain obligations.

Apart from protected areas, government legislation may also impose conditions on
land rights with the aim of achieving environmental goals, as when farmers must adopt certain
soil conservation measures on their land, or where financial incentives are put in place to
encourage new forms of land management. Legal measures should take into account the
effective ability (political power and financial means) of national/local governments to
enforce land use patterns in practice.

Land policy and land use planning

Expansion of agriculture or rapid urban growth can generate many land-related

problems. The consequences of unplanned land use are most apparent in peri-urban areas and
those regions receiving a major inflow of migrants or refugees. Changes in population and
patterns of land use require some form of direction to minimize adverse from poorly sited
buildings, loss of green spaces, the need to set aside land for infrastructural development and
service provision. Thus, land policy needs to be coherent with sound land use planning and, in
turn, land use planning must comply with land and rural development policies aimed at
strengthening poor people’s access to land. Expropriation for public interest, land

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consolidation, land readjustments must be implemented through an established transparent

procedure, include prompt and fair compensation, and take into account effects on
neighboring properties. Administrative, legislative and legal procedures should guarantee that
there is no resettlement without adequate rehabilitation and compensation.

It must also be recognized that there are limits to what government can achieve in
terms of enforcing planning regulations. Government may well find, for example, that people
are cultivating land which is not, strictly speaking, appropriate or in accordance with land use
planning guidelines. A pragmatic approach is needed whereby land use plans are used as a
platform to debate land use options. Government planners will therefore need to engage and
negotiate with local land users, rather than assuming that their plan constitutes a blueprint for
immediate application. Equally, local communities should be encouraged to come up with
their own planning processes, which build on their desire to improve the management and
productivity of the resources within their territory.

Land Policy and Land Reform

A key precondition for land reform to be feasible and effective in improving
beneficiaries livelihood is that such a program fit into the broader policy. Land reforms (also
agrarian reform, though that can have a broader meaning) is an often-controversial alteration
in the societal arrangements whereby a government administers the ownership and use of
land. Land reform may consist of a government-initiated or government-backed property
redistribution, generally of agricultural land, or be part of an even more revolutionary
program that may include forcible removal of an existing government that is seen to oppose
such reforms.

Throughout history, popular discontent with land-related institutions has been one of
the most common factors in provoking revolutionary movements and other social upheavals.
To those who work on the land, the landowner's privilege of taking a substantial portion —in
some cases half or even more— of production may seem unfair.

Consequently, land reform most often refers to transfer of ownership from the more
powerful to the less powerful: from a relatively small number of wealthy (or noble) owners
with extensive land holdings (e.g. plantations, large ranches, or agribusiness plots) to
individual ownership by those who work the land. Such transfer of ownership may be with or
without compensation; compensation may vary from token amounts to the full value of the
land. The land value tax advocated by Georgists is a moderate, market-based version of land
reform.

In South Africa there were laws to keep different race groups apart. These have been
withdrawn, but it is taking time for the customs to change. Not only is it necessary to remove
restrictive laws to bring about Land Reform, but it will be necessary to introduce new laws to
assist in land distribution. Political and legislative change on its own is of no lasting
advantage without being accompanied by economic reform, which gives an advantage to the
people.

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ESTABLISHMENT OF LAND POLICY FRAMEWORK

In view of the wide variation of conditions across countries it is impossible to design

“blue print” solutions or recipes without awareness of the overall conditions. Given the long
term nature of interventions in the area of land policy, integration into the broader global and
national development strategies is particularly relevant.

In establishing a land policy framework, it is necessary to take into account all issues
affecting the land sector, regional and global efforts to improve land administration and a will
to make the change. To institutionalize the process, a model is necessary to establish a plan of
action to achieve the desired purpose of establishing a land policy that meets the needs of the
changing time.

Institutional Models

Evolutionary Political Process: The eight step approach:

 Political statement and commitment
 linking political priorities and land
 sub-regional workshops
 initiate pilot projects for learning
 elaborate “Green Paper” Land Policy
 Public consultation and lessons learned
 White Paper
 Implementation of Land Policy

Establishing National Land Policy Boards or Councils (LPC) and Technical Secretariat’s
(SLPC) for inter-ministerial decision making
Terms of Reference, mandate nomination of member, best practices

Consultation and dialogue

Initiatives for a sector-wide approach and mechanism for inter-ministerial co-ordination
 The Parliament and the sub-commission on land, natural resources and housing
 The role of professional associations and research institution
 Establish Provincial/ District/ Municipal Land Use and Land Allocation
Committees under local government leadership
 Delegation of power from Ministries to Provincial / District level after building
the professional capacities
 Upgrade the curriculum of existing professional educational programs related
to land or establish new educational programs (new Faculty Land Management
and Land Administration in Cambodia)
 Implement comprehensive HRD strategy at all levels for technical skills,
management and leadership
 Initiate public / private partnership models like licensing cadastral surveyors,
notaries, land valuer’s

Implementation

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An important step in the implementation of any policy is to cost it, i.e. assess its
financial, institutional, personnel and infrastructure requirements. This will determine the
pace and sequencing of policy implementations. Such costing must be seen not merely as
expenditure, but more importantly as investment in a program expected to revitalize the land
sector for immeasurable economic and social benefits.

The process of realistic costing will involve:

 development of cost estimates for all activities or programs anticipated by the
policy; taking an inventory of existing resource capacity in the land sector to
determine their usability and level of short-fall in the implementation of the
policy;
 auditing existing and proposed new institutional structures to eliminate
wastage due to duplication, overlaps and unproductive competition among
various decision-making centers; and
 ensuring that the cost of implementation of the policy is fully budgeted as part
of land sector reform.

The implementation of the policy framework must be programmed. A crucial

challenge in land policy implementation involves the programming of its various components.
That entails, inter alia , the design of appropriate legislative, institutional and further policy
refinement strategies, preparation of a programme of activities based on those strategies,
sequencing the implementation of programme components, and development and
operationalization of specific indicators for measuring programme implementation effects.

Land policy implementation will take a long time. It is important, therefore, that
mechanisms should exist for monitoring its progress and where necessary, its revision. This
must be based on appropriate standards established for integrated monitoring of the economy
in general and the land economy in particular.

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LAND POLICY AND GOOD GOVERNANCE

Land is the single greatest resource in most countries. Access to land, security of
tenure and land management has significant implications for development. Land
administration provides important parts of the infrastructure for an efficient economy, which
means that it touches all aspects of how people earn a living. Weak governance, whether in
formal land administration or customary tenure arrangements, means that the land rights of
the poor are not protected. It affects the poor in particular and may leave them marginalized
and outside the law.

Weak governance may also mean that land is not used appropriately to create wealth
for the benefit of society. Lack of competence in land administration can be an important
constraint on development and the eradication of poverty. Good governance in land
administration is one of the central requirements for achieving good governance in society.

Governance in land tenure and administration cannot be separated from governance of

other sectors. The guide is likely to be of most use in countries that are making progress in
improving governance of society as a whole. Working to achieve higher standards of land
administration is one way in which a dysfunctional society can improve its governance.
Improvements in land administration can help realize a society’s commitment to democracy,
the rule of law and human rights. Good governance in the context of development cooperation
means favorable political framework conditions for social, ecological and market-oriented
economic development as well as responsible use of political power and public resources by
the state.

BOX 1
WEAK GOVERNANCE AND STATE CAPTURE
• Agencies are controlled by the powerful for the purposes of exploiting the state’s power for their own
purposes.
• The courts give decisions in land conflicts that favour the powerful irrespective of the merits of the
case.
• Actions are taken with impunity as there is no one to hold the decision-makers to account. The
organs of the state, such as the police and judiciary that should be responsible instead serve the
interests of the group that has captured the state.
• Powerful groups take the land of the poor through illegal forced evictions.
• Compulsory purchase is used to acquire the land of individuals and groups at a low value. This land
is then redeveloped for private gain.
• The land of the powerful is rezoned for a higher value use without regard to principles of land use
planning.
• State-owned land is transferred to the powerful without payment or for a small fee.
• State-owned land is privatized and transferred to third parties for informal payments.
• Mining or logging rights are allocated to the powerful without regard to existing customary or other
tenure rights or to the environment.

FAO 2007, Good Governance in land tenure and administration, land tenure studies 9, Rome

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BOX 2
WEAK GOVERNANCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE CORRUPTION
• Bribery. Payment is extracted by corrupt officials to perform a free service, to prevent the
enforcement of regulations, to secure a favourable decision or to speed up a process. Examples include
bribes to process land registration, not to enforce building regulations and to secure favourable land
use planning decisions. Violations go unpunished if payments are made to officials. Queues can be
bypassed on payment.
• Employment of “facilitators”. In order to overcome frictions in the system, agents are employed.
They offer benefits to officials to act in the interests of their clients. Sometimes threats or blackmail
are used. Such agents earn fees from their clients, though they may cooperate with corrupt officials to
enrich both at the expense of clients.
• Theft. State property is stolen and sold for private advantage. Government contractors may work on
private projects, e.g. construction for officials and politicians using materials and labour paid for by
the government.
• Fraud. False claims for payments are made. Valuations of land are understated to minimize the tax
payments or overstated to support mortgage fraud. False invoices and non-existent staff members on
the payroll are used.
• Extortion and blackmail. Citizens pay officials to prevent unfavourable treatment such as the
enforcement of unreasonable or inconsistent regulations or tax demands.
Businesses may be threatened when an inefficient administration and unclear practices act as a barrier
to behaving legally. Having once behaved.
• Nepotism and favouritism. Officials use their influence in favour of family, political associates and
friends. Official posts are obtained through purchase or influence, and not through open and
competitive recruitment.
• Misconduct in public office. Officials misuse their position for private gain. Confidential
information obtained through employment is used for private gain, through the buying or selling of
shares or land, e.g. before news of a proposed government development is made public. Facilities
provided for use in employment, e.g. official cars, are used for private purposes.

Good governance and anti- corruption measures in land tenure and administration can
take a variety of forms, and their adequacy will depend on the prevalence of the respective
types of corruption and on the political and institutional environment of the country in
question. This is particularly important where institutional capacity is likely to be weak and
where consequently the timing, sequencing and design of reform is crucial to ensure the
feasibility and sustainability of the reform process. (see FAO 2007, Good Governance in land
tenure and administration and W. Zimmermann 2007, Good Governance in land tenure)

Dedicated agencies

Another area is the need to curb high levels of administrative discretion which,
coupled with a lack of clear rules and regulations, is conducive to the persistence or
facilitation of phenomena like land capture, the corrupt allocation and management of public
land and land allocation more generally. Most of the causes and conditions contributing to
corruption in these areas are best and most sustainably addressed by comprehensive
institutional reform and capacity-building. However, the extent to which public officials
dispose of discretionary powers can be substantially reduced by the establishment or
strengthening of a specialized agency whose sole aim is the administration land (private land
and public land) in a transparent and effective fashion. Generally speaking, given the often
negative impact of conflict or indeed transition on the effectiveness of state institutions, the

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measures chosen should be in line with the institutional capacity already present, and ideally
have an emphasis on further strengthening and re-engineering existing state institutions.

Legal measures

Many problems related to corruption in land policy and reform are rooted in
insufficient or incoherent and improperly enforced legal provisions, such as the lack of a
comprehensive and unambiguous regulatory framework governing security of land tenure,
access to and use of land (in particular in national contexts where statutory and customary
laws co-exist), confusion over existing rules (in particular in transition economies where laws
are subject to frequent change) and failure to enact of those rules and regulations whose
presence is likely to reduce corrupt opportunities. The result is an institutional environment in
which uncertainty and confusion facilitate the exercise of corrupt practices and where the risk
of detection is reduced due to the insufficient nature of law enforcement agencies.

While regulations relating to issues like rights of ownership and land usage are likely
to be different depending on the national context, three areas often missing from the legal
dispositions - and complementing efforts to streamline legal provisions - are access to
information provisions, conflict of interest legislation and whistleblower protection schemes.
Access to information provisions is the basic prerequisites for citizens to hold public officials
accountable for their actions. Information is the central to effective civil society participation
and monitoring of government activities. Free access to information enables citizens, the
media and law-enforcement agencies to uncover cases of corruption and maladministration.
More importantly, however, the transparency herewith achieved acts as a deterrent to bad
governance as the risk of detection of illicit or otherwise questionable practices, like for
example the preferential treatment of government employees and their cronies in the
distribution of land, increases. Freedom of information is thus an essential element of
sustainable corruption control in the land sector.

 Conflicts of interest arise when the private interests of a public official clash or
coincide with the public interest and potentially inhibit the official's objectivity in the
exercise of his or her tasks and duties. As such, conflicts of interest rules explicitly
demand the establishment of openness and transparency measures designed to limit
corrupt opportunities, such as the declaration of interests and the interdiction of
parallel activity of public servants in the political and business sectors, which is of
particular relevance in areas such as the illegal use of land and concessions for the use
of public land.

 Whistleblower protection schemes i.e. the development of procedures to facilitate the

reporting of actions perceived to be against the standards set in, for example, a code of
conduct are important in that they reflect a commitment to openness and transparency,
and a willingness to take action against those in breach of the rules.
Of course, without implementation by public institutions and proper enforcement by
law enforcement agencies like the police and the courts, legal provisions remain
ineffective in creating a corruption-free environment.
Capacity-building

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Weak institutional capacity is an impediment to good governance and can seriously

endanger the effective implementation of national policies and consequently of anti-
corruption strategies.

Capacity-building aims at enabling organizations to handle increasingly complex

tasks, such as the implementation of large-scale redistributive land reforms, by equipping
them with the necessary technical and human know-how as well as with adequate resources.
Measures typically include:
 Regular training of existing and new staff in their area of work in order to familiarize
them with the technical requirements of their position as well as to update them on
latest developments in the field. This can be done in-house, facilitated by external
agents or be provided on an ongoing basis through, for example, secondment
programmes.
 Ethics training for staff to familiarize them with the moral and professional standards
of behavior expected of them, and to encourage the development of a culture of
integrity within the organization. Ethics training can refer primarily to agency-specific
codes of conduct, but also aim more broadly at raising awareness of anti-corruption
strategies and mechanisms. Provision of access to equipment necessary for the
execution of professional tasks
 Sufficient levels of funding for the organization as well as for remuneration of staff to
reduce incentives for corruption on the basis of need.

Further measures include the strengthening of internal accountability mechanisms,

through, for example, the establishment of clear reporting lines and responsibilities, whistle
blowing procedures and internal and external audits, as well as through the elimination or
simplification of arbitrary or inefficient regulations. Finally, watchdog institutions like anti-
corruption agencies, ombudsman, and supreme audit institutions can - if implemented
properly - greatly contribute to an increase in overall public sector accountability.

Civil society

Civil society is one of the most important actors in the fight against corruption, and
has great potential to bring forward a government's reform agenda. Public awareness
campaigns (of the costs of corruption, of the benefits of anti-corruption reform, etc), anti-
corruption education and training of citizens in the exercise of their rights are crucial in
bringing about lasting change in the way business and government are conducted. A society
with little or no experience in dealing with properly regulated and functioning institutions will
not be in a position to positively contribute to change if they are unaware of their rights and
the way things should work.

One of the most powerful tools an empowered civil society can use is the monitoring
of state institutions or state activity through Citizen Card System, which is particularly
effective if the local population involved has a great stake in a less corrupt environment.

Strengthening National Professional associations

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Model codes of conduct have been developed by the relevant international associations
and could be adapted to national requirements, especially for:

 association of licensed surveyors

 association of real estate agents
 bar association
 association for the protection of land owners rights

Private sector

The active involvement of the private sector in anti-corruption programmes can

positively contribute to reducing corruption in the land sector. Examples on the national and
firm level include adherence by companies to no-bribery, the issue and enforcement of
company codes of conduct and corporate guidelines, as well as the establishment of means to
encourage compliance by employees to company policies, like confidential help lines,
whistleblower protection and training.

On the international level, the subscription by firms to voluntary codes of conduct like
the TI Business Principles for Countering Bribery) or to sector-specific initiatives like the
Publish What You Pay campaign can complement the need for compliance to the
requirements of the OECD Convention on Combating Bribery and the accompanying national
implementing legislation. The private sector is playing an increasing role in land-related tasks.
Public-private-partnership arrangements in land administration and land management should
be based on good governance principles, transparent rules, division of tasks and be free of
conflicts of interest.

Examples of practical measures for improving land governance

 Introduce a framework for transparency, including integrity pacts (see TI),
development of effective contracting arrangements, use of anti-corruption agencies,
whistleblower arrangements for protecting land professionals,
 Carry of customer surveys on a regular basis (see Albania case)
 Set service standards, clear procedures and performance control
 Develop a strategy for human resource development
 Establish an independent auditing
 Make effective use of communication and information technologies
 Strengthen customary institutions and improve interaction with others

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