By Sergii Kubakh and Patrick Rader
The poverty rate among the rural population in Ukraine reinforces the need to change the rural development model. Land reform, reform of power decentralization, and local self-governance are underway in the country. Land is the main resource, but communities lack experience and tools for land resource management. Approaches and tools developed by the USAID-funded Agriculture and Rural Development Support (ARDS) project are feasible for helping newly-established communities set up a system for spatial planning and efficient land use and protection based on modern GIS-technology; and to resolve community development issues of environmental, social, and investment nature. Public discussion of community plans and decisions adopted later by the local authorities are an important component of this system. The proposed methodology has been tested in pilot communities and enables the mitigation of corruption risks in land relations, as well as improves well-being in rural areas.
Key Words: Cadastre, community, land, land survey, planning