Training Workshop on Effective Land Administration in Africa

A training workshop on effective land administration in Africa was held at United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) on 9 – 13 November 2017. The workshop was organized on behalf of NELGA by the Regional Centre for Mapping of Resources for Development (RCMRD), Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), the African Land Policy Centre (ALPC), UN-Habitat and the Global Land Tool Network (GLTN).

The theme of the workshop “Innovative Concepts, Tools and Practices for Effective Land Administration” was focused on the implementation of Fit for Purpose Frame­works in support of the African Union’s (AU) Agenda on Land and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through capacity development. The objectives of the work­shop were to create a platform for learning and sharing key land administration cases, approaches, achievements and challenges as well as to learn about innovative land concepts, tools and practices.

The results of the workshop were presented at the Conference on Land Policy in Africa 2017 organized by ALPC in Addis Ababa, 14 – 17 ovember 2017, under the topic: “The Africa We Want: Achieving socioeco­nomic transformation through inclusive and equitable access to land by the youth”.

Participants during the group work. Photo: © RCMRD

“The best part of the training was experience sharing on land administration by participants from different countries”.

Workshop participant

 

Learning innovative land concepts, tools and practices

 

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During the workshop trainers presented innovative tools in land administration such as Social Tenure Domain Model (STDM) and Gender Evaluation Criteria (GEC). The participants had a chance to practice the software and discuss possibilities of implementing the concepts in their research and practical work. The workshop highlighted the important role of technology and innovative approaches in land administration.

 

Creating academia-policy-practice linkages by connecting participants with diverse background

 

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The workshop brought together land officials, technical personnel, professionals, academia, lawyers, civil society organisations and other actors from across the land sector for joint learning on innovative and effective land administration tools and practices for secure land rights and improved land governance in Africa.

In total, 30 participants from 14 countries participated in the training: Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sudan, South Sudan, Zambia, Zimbabwe. The participants were drawn from various sectors including public, private and academia with the objective of strengthening academia-policy-practice linkages and knowledge exchange in land administration.

 

“The workshop content and coordination was excellent as it addressed different aspects of land administration and gave specific attention to gender issues”.

Workshop participant

Way forward

 

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As a way forward the participants discussed opportunities for strengthening the role of NELGA in land administration issues in their countries and agreed on the need for in-country follow up workshops on land governance, Massive Online Course (MOCC) and webinars on innovative tools. It was also agreed to actively engage the private sector in future trainings, knowledge exchange and decision-making processes.