The purpose of the Ethiopia Land Administration to Nurture Development (LAND) program is to expand and extend two previously successful projects—Ethiopia Strengthening Land Tenure and Land Administration Program (ELTAP) implemented in 2005-2008 and Ethiopia Strengthening Land Administration Program (ELAP) implemented in 2008-2013 – financed by The United States Agency for International Development (USAID)/Ethiopia Mission and implemented by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and six regional states with technical assistance provided by Tetra Tech ARD. These projects helped strengthen rural land tenure security and women’s land use rights; encourage efficient land transactions; build capacity of federal and regional land administration agencies to improve service delivery and pilot cadastral surveying and certification methodologies to recognize and document rural land use rights.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
During the reporting period, LAND made considerable progress on most project components.
Under Component 1 (Improved legal and policy frameworks at national and local levels)
LAND worked closely with the Oromia Rural Land Administration Bureau (OBERLEP) to develop the draft Oromia Pastoral Land Administration and Management Regulation that will recognize and protect land rights of pastoral communities. The LAND Property Rights Lawyer and legal experts from OBERLEP prepared legal analysis, explanatory notes and suggested language to enrich the draft regulation.
LAND finalized preparations to facilitate a national workshop to be held on October 20-21 to engage government decision makers in discussions highlighting the need for an overarching national land use policy to guide legislation that will ensure efficient use of land and protect natural resources. LAND engaged expert consultants who produced peer-reviewed policy papers that will be presented and discussed during the workshop to help pave the way for crafting the national land use policy.
Bahir Dar University delivered its draft report on the assessment of the implementation of the Amhara National Regional State (NRS) and their impacts. LAND provided editing comments and suggestions to strengthen the assessment report.
Under Component 2 (Strengthened capacity in national, regional, and local land administration and use planning)
LAND continued its support to build the capacity of federal and regional land administration and land use (LALU) professionals in cost-effective land use planning methodologies to develop national and regional master land use plans and local level land use plans that are envisioned in the Ministry of Agriculture’s Growth and Transformation Plan. I LAND developed a Trainer of Trainers methodology to build training capacity at the regional level to then be cascade to the woreda and kebele levels. LAND delivered a training module in conventional methods of land use planning and GIS and remote sensing to 260 regional trainers. The training will be cascaded in the coming quarter.
Bahir Dar, Haramaya, Hawassa and Mekelle Universities produced training manuals to strengthen capacity of land administration officials in their respective states to implement provisions in federal and regional states’ land administration and land use legislation. LAND has begun to support preparation of training manuals on the topics of Expropriation, Valuation, and Compensation.
Under Component 3 (Strengthened capacity of Ethiopian universities to engage in policy analysis and research related to land tenure and train land administration and land use professionals)
LAND partnered with Bahir Dar University’s Institute of Land Administration (ILA/BU) to offer a master’s degree program for federal and regional land administration professionals to build advanced skills. The first group of 41 professionals successfully completed the two summer course works, and are embarking on thesis research to earn their M.Sc. degree. The second group of 42 students began their studies also in the past year. Ethiopian Land Research and Development Network (ETHIOLANDNET) located at Bahir Dar University was established with LAND assistance and a three-year capacity strengthening grant. During the quarter it conducted its second annual general meeting in conjunction with the 7th Eastern Africa Land Administration Network annual general meeting that was hosted by the Institute of Land Administration of Bahir Dar University.
The six grantees awarded grants under LAND’s Competitive Research Grant Scheme are all making satisfactory progress to carry out research.
Under Component 4 (Strengthened community land rights in pastoral and agro-pastoral areas to facilitate market linkages and economic growth)
LAND provided technical and financial support to the Institute of Pastoral Studies of Haramaya University (IPAS/HU) to conduct the “Assessment of the Customary Land Administration and Natural Resource Management in the Pastoral Areas of the Oromia Regional State”. The assessment was requested by the OBERLEP to inform development of its draft regulation to recognize and secure pastoral land use rights. LAND facilitated a workshop with Oromia officials, community representatives, and other stakeholders to present and validate findings presented in the assessment report.
LAND also facilitated the Oromia Regional and Zonal Pastoral Advisory Committees meetings to discuss the appropriate geographic boundaries for certifying pastoral land use rights. Regional officials requested that LAND organize additional grassroots level consultations with pastoral communities. LAND will assist the formation of technical committees in the Borana and Guji zones that will then conduct consultations in up to four locations in each zone. Consultative meetings will be conducted in two woredas in Guji Zone that were not included in previous consultations.
Terms of Reference were developed for a rapid assessment of the customary land administration and natural resources management in Amibara and Chifra woredas of the Afar National Regional State. The purpose of the assessment is to compile information on the customary organizational structure and the rules and regulations employed by the communities in the two woredas in managing natural resources including rangelands.
A team of experts comprising participants from the Ministry of Agriculture, the LAND project, and land administration agencies and bureaus of five National Regional States (Afar, Oromia, SNNP, Somali, and Gambela) participated in the study tour on land use planning and land tenure/governance issues in pastoral areas of Kenya and Tanzania. The purpose of the tour was to learn from the experiences of these countries to identify best practices potentially relevant to the Ethiopian context.