Promoting inclusive local land tenure governance in Mauritania and Sierra Leone

Weak land governance in Mauritania and Sierra Leone leads to insecure tenure and unequal access to land and other natural resources, particularly among women and youth.

Validity period: June 2023–May 2026
Budget: USD 1.500.000 + 500.000

Conflicts can arise because of competition over natural resources between different user groups, and also because large areas of land are increasingly being purchased by foreign and domestic investors, causing land scarcity for local communities. This scarcity has begun to affect land distribution and ownership, as evidenced by shrinking farm sizes, rising land prices, and increasing levels of inequality in ownership. All of these factors, coupled with prevailing customary land tenure systems, are limiting the likelihood of rural youth to access land for productive purposes, contributing to increasing migration rates. Strong tenure governance can mitigate the above-mentioned issues; however, existing systems generally exclude the most vulnerable groups, meaning that young people and women are not aware of their rights or empowered to exercise them. In addition, land administration can be complicated and expensive, limiting who can undertake related procedures. This project was formulated to tackle the imbalance of power related to land tenure governance in Mauritania and Sierra Leone by raising the awareness of women, youth and other disadvantaged groups on the topic and by laying out roadmaps to promote transformative changes in local governance of tenure.

Goal

The overarching goal of the project is to promote more inclusive local tenure governance by strengthening multistakeholder platforms and local land governance institutions to (i) empower communities in tenure-related dialogues; and (ii) monitor the implementation of the country roadmaps in line with the principles of the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests (VGGT). In Sierra Leone, the project seeks to enhance local institutions and governance processes to support equal access to natural resources. In addition, it will develop and test land governance assessment and monitoring tools through a human rights-based approach. In Mauritania, existing multistakeholder mechanisms are to be strengthened locally and nationally through the promotion of inclusive land governance practices, with a focus on involving women and youth.
In both countries, communication products will be developed to promote knowledge sharing, and regional and global learning events will be held to capitalize on the project results.

Impact

Through increased inclusivity, equality and more democratic and efficient tenure governance and accountability mechanisms, the project results are expected to increase food security and resilience among smallholders.

Approach

Capacity development activities on fostering inclusivity will be carried out for local institutions.
Local governance practices will be assessed, and accountability monitoring will be introduced.
Existing multistakeholder land tenure platforms will be improved through the involvement of women, youth and pastoralists at national and local-level tenure dialogues.
The inclusion of women and youth will be supported in local transboundary committees established to prevent and resolve conflicts related to transhumance.
Tools on the VGGT and for assessing legal pastoralism frameworks will be produced and disseminated.

Partners

Key ministries in charge of land, agriculture and livestock, parliamentarians and local governments, and non-State actors including civil society organizations (CSOs), traditional leaders, research institutions and think tanks

Beneficiaries

Mauritania: Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and CSOs, le Groupement National des Associations de coopérative Pastorale de Mauritanie (GNAP), smallholder farmers and pastoralist communities

Sierra Leone: Green Scenery, Land for Life Initiative, Namati, Network Movement for Justice and Development, Sierra Leone Human Rights Commission, the West Africa Network for Peacebuilding, smallholder farmers and pastoralist communities