Category: Uncategorized

Country profiles for 62 USAID presence countries have been drafted to provide information on key issues and constraints for land tenure security, legal framework and land administration, as well as summaries of tenure issues with freshwater, trees and forests and minerals for each country. Check back under the PRRG Products tab, Country Profiles for additional profiles.

In the early 2000s, ARD, with support from USAID—through GLT2—facilitated the development of land tenure profiles for 86 countries around the world. These profiles provided important information on fundamental land tenure issues, including tenure types, legal framework, and land administration and institutions. While some profiles had certain shortcomings, many profiles were effective in informing US government (USG) foreign assistance agencies in Washington and missions abroad, and contributed to policy discussions and the design of new strategies and investments.

Based on the success of this first set of profiles, PRRGP was tasked with developing a second generation of country profiles for 62 of the 86 countries profiled under GLT2, including many countries that receive significant USG foreign assistance. The 62 countries are grouped into three categories—Tier 1, Tier 2, and Tier 3 countries—with Tier 1 countries being the most important from a USG investment perspective. PRRGP project partners, ARD and its subcontractors The World Resources Institute (WRI) and The Rural Development Institute (RDI), aim to post all 62 profiles on the PRRG portal by the end of 2010. Please check back under the PRRG Products tab, country profiles for new profiles.

With the posting of the Kenya PROMARA Chief of Party, Ian Deshmukh, in August 2010 the PROMARA project has officially begun. PROMARA is a two-year PRRGP project working with USAID/Kenya in the Mau Forest Complex towards the southwest of Kenya. PROMARA, or “for the Mara”, aims to enhance sustainable and equitable management of Kenya’s rich biodiverse resource areas, which are essential to the protection of the human environment and natural ecosystems.
Kenya PROMARA Project Gets Underway.

The Mara-Mau catchment area is one of the most critical areas not only in Kenya but in East Africa for both biodiversity conservation and ecosystem services. It is also fragile politically and socially with many disenfranchised people and weak institutions. PROMARA will focus on enhancing the financial and social benefits associated with conservation. Based on the Kenyan experience since the 1990s, these benefits are expected to attract and motivate local communities and individuals to change their behavior regarding natural resources.

PROMARA is also designed to address several of the US government and Government of the Republic of Kenya’s key joint concerns including: political stability, conflict and insecurity; threats to biodiversity; good governance and the rule of law; and economic development. With PROMARA, USAID/Kenya is making an initial investment to address these issues, particularly resource tenure and natural resource management, in the Mara – Mau. The goal is to contribute to a long-term strategy of recovering the integrity of the Mara-Mau ecosystem.

PROMARA will have four activities:

1. Improvement of land and resource tenure;
2. Contribute toward restoration/protection of critical catchment, forests and biodiversity;
3. Contribute toward improvement of livelihoods for catchment residents; and
4. Establish and operation of the Mara Outreach Center.

The PRRGP chief of party, Mark Freudenberger, attended the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) in Tel Aviv, Israel from June 21-24, 2010.

Property Rights and Artisanal Diamond Development Project (PRADD) COP Attends Kimberley Process Certification Scheme

The PRRGP chief of party, Mark Freudenberger, attended the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) in Tel Aviv, Israel from June 21-24, 2010. The PRADD project actively participated in plenary and inter-sessional meetings and contributed financially through a contract with Partnership Africa Canada to provide field based information to the Enforcement Seminar held on June 24th. Over 50 participants from the KP family participated inthis innovative workshop attended by international law enforcement agencies and the KPCS representatives of government, civil society, and the diamond mining industry. Informational presentations spelled out the nature of international smuggling in diamonds and enforcement issues confronting the Kimberley Process. Participants from West Africa held a two hour session on enforcement issues specific to the Mono River Union countries of Cote d’Ivoire, Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. PRADD financed in addition the participation of 3 delegates from customs and enforcement from Vietnam, Burkina Faso, and Liberia.

In advance of the meetings in Tel Aviv, and with financial support from Partnership Africa Canada (PAC), PRADD held a series of preparatory national level stakeholder meetings in Guinea, Côte d’Ivoire, Sierra Leone, and Liberia. The KPCS tripartite representatives from government, civil society, and the diamond industry in each country held in-depth discussions on the causes and consequences of smuggling and other illicit activities around artisanal diamond production. PRADD Liberia contributed to the costs of site visits to three mining areas led by the Ministry of Lands, Mines, and Energy. Over 500 diamond miners and other stakeholders contributed very actively to these informational meetings.