Learning Exchange and Policy Dialogue on Customary Tenure (CT) Recognition, Food Security and Traditional Livelihoods in the ASEAN Region

1 December 2021 to 3 December 2021

THEME

Linking customary tenure (CT) recognition, food security and traditional livelihoods in the ASEAN region

December 1-3, 2021 | 2PM Philippine time | via Zoom

https://bit.ly/ASEANRLEPDonCT

https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZEkd-GsqTIiGN0XOHxAP7-GOVbabkQz4uUf

Introduction

The State of the World’s Forest in 2018 underscored that clear and secured tenure rights are recognized as an important prerequisite for the sustainable management of natural resources. Tenure covers multiple rights, including at a minimum, the right to access, the right to make management decisions and the right to withdraw resources from a particular area. Over the past few years, there have been progress in the areas of tenure and safeguards at the ASEAN (regional) level, particularly in the Mekong sub-region. Free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) provisions under international and national laws, policies and programs have gained strength. Several legal reforms have been proposed, and in part adopted, in recent years on land in the region. Both customary tenure (CT) and FPIC have been recognized as key indicators in an important guideline for responsible investment in food agriculture and forestry.

However, despite these developments, several challenges remain. For customary forest tenure, access and ownership are still conditional and restricted in several cases. Land conflicts remain high. Further cases of encroachments in customary land and forests threaten customary rights and impede on traditional livelihood and customary conservation and resource management practices. In terms of safeguards, FPIC guidelines have not been developed and institutionalized in several ASEAN countries, and many development projects such as dam construction, mining, and agroindustry crops are taking place without the consent of communities. The lack of capacity and awareness by the local communities and indigenous peoples on the international and regional mechanisms that provide safeguards over community rights limit their ability to engage authorities about the adherence to these safeguards.

Based on the latest available figures collected by The Center for People and Forest, formerly the Regional Community Forestry Training Center for Asia and the Pacific (RECOFTC), the ASEAN region has approximately 10,078,435 ha of state forestland managed under official social forestry agreements or communal land titles (RECOFTC and AWG-SF, 2017). While those that have social forestry policies have a tenure system in place, tenurial rights can easily be revoked by the government depending on its priorities. Incentives for the local people to manage the forest sustainably in terms of use rights also depend on the policies of the government and the clarity of how these policies were written (Ramirez, et al., 2019).

Building on these gains and recognizing existing challenges, it is vital to continue amplifying the work towards the development, adoption and implementation of CT recognition and the use of safeguards such as FPIC in securing rights over customary forest tenure in the Mekong region through strengthening the policy and practice work (action research, analyses and assessments, capacity building and knowledge exchange) that will deliver increased capacities, key lessons, policy recommendations, and policy guidance in securing customary forest tenure and FPIC safeguards.

Learning Exchange and Policy Dialogue on Customary Tenure (CT) Recognition, Food Security and Traditional Livelihoods in the ASEAN Region

The regional learning exchange and policy dialogue is part of the project, “Strengthening regional mechanisms and capacities in engaging, implementing, and adopting CT recognition and FPIC as safeguards in the Mekong region”. It aims to contribute towards the following Outcome:

ASEAN Guidelines for CT recognition is supported, adopted, and implemented by ASEAN Member States to support national policies and legislations (Outcome 2)

In this Learning Exchange and Policy Dialogue, the organizers aim to:

Raise awareness on the status of CT recognition in different member states of the ASEAN, focusing particularly on its intersect with food security and traditional livelihoods;
Present to multi-stakeholder partners different views, strategies and approaches concerning policy reform on CT recognition at the national and regional levels; and
Discuss and review the draft zero of an ASEAN Guidelines for CT Recognition and identify action points to promote its adoption at the regional and national levels.

Key Participants

ASEAN Member State representatives working in the environment and forestry sector; government officials
Civil society organizations – e.g., CSO Forum on Social Forestry in ASEAN, RRI, The Tenure Facility, Land Portal
National CT alliance members
Regional CT Alliance Members
Indigenous people and local community representatives
Relevant regional and national bodies – AWG-SF, ASEAN Secretariat, Steering Committee on CCFS
Family farmers in forested landscapes in the ASEAN region (men, women, youth and IPs)
Other development partners (e.g. FAO, International Land Coalition (ILC), IFAD etc.)

Interpretation channels

Khmer, Lao, Vietnamese, Burmese, Thai, Bahasa, Filipino

Additional notes

This activity is part of a series of activities geared towards the development of the ASEAN Guidelines for CT Recognition.
The first activity, a technical seminar and knowledge sharing, will be organized by NTFP-EP on November 11-12, 2021, and will focus on the general overview of the status of CT recognition and FPIC in the ASEAN region. This learning exchange and policy dialogue will come after, with the goal of (1) linking CT recognition with food security and traditional livelihoods; and (2) reviewing the zero draft of the ASEAN Guidelines.

Day 1: Understanding CT recognition and Food Security and Traditional Livelihoods in the ASEAN Region

Starting time: 02:00PM Philippine time

Duration: 2 hours 45 minutes (program proper, not including breaks)

Main host: Germaine de Rona, AFA

Time	Duration	Session	Format	Content/ Discussion Questions	Speaker/ Facilitator
01:30 PM	30 minutes	Setting up and testing the connections with speakers and translators	n/a	n/a	Technical team
02:00 PM	30 minutes	Setting the scene: Opening ceremony Opening remarks Introduction of guests and participants Introduction to the program	Plenary	Speakers will be given 5 minutes each for the opening remarks	AWG-SF - tbc ASEAN Secretariat – tbc MRLG – Natalie Campbell NTFP-EP – Ms. Femy Pinto AFA – Conchita Calzado
02:30 PM	Presentation 1: 5-7 minutes Presentation 2: 7 minutes each Presentation 3: 14 minutes Total: 1 hour	Session 1. Understanding the intersect of CT recognition, food security and traditional livelihoods - Presentation 1. Introduction on CT and CT Recognition - Presentation 2. Case study findings Cambodia Lao PDR Myanmar Vietnam - Presentation 3. Overview of situation of non CLMV countries - Q&A	Panel presentations	Presentation 1. Definition of the core concepts of CT and types of CT recognition and its dimensions (bundle of rights, decision-making, gender, etc.) Presentation 2. Results of the case studies in Mekong countries Background of the selected communities (e.g. CT recognitions status, food security status, types of traditional livelihoods) Links between CT norms and livelihoods and food security objectives Gender, youth and IP dimensions Presentation 3. General overview of the situation of CT, food security and traditional livelihoods in non-CLMV countries; Examples showing the linkage between CT, food security and traditional livelihoods; Gender, IP and youth dimensions	Presentation 1. RECOFTC - Nathalie Faure Presentation 2. FNN - Bunhieng Hean LFN - Nousavanh Pheuangsavanh MERN - Than Soe Oo CISDOMA - Tung Pham Quang Presentation 3. AFA- Riza Bernabe
03:30 PM	20 minutes	Break		Intermission (video) Ang Pangarap ni Alvin
03:50 PM	30 minutes	Session 1 (cont). Understanding the intersect of CT recognition, food security and traditional livelihoods - Country-level breakout group discussions	Breakout group	Guide questions: Are there similarities/ differences between your experiences and the case studies with regard to the linkage between CT recognition, food security and traditional livelihoods? What are the facilitators and barriers that improve/ hinder CT recognition, food security and traditional livelihoods in your community/ country?	Breakout groups: National-level (if there is at least 5-7 participants for each country) English breakout group - for participants from regional/ global organizations Facilitators Case study researchers Note-takers: tbc
04:20 PM	Plenary reporting: 5 minutes each Total: 30 minutes	Session 1 (cont). Understanding the intersect of CT recognition, food security and traditional livelihoods - Plenary reporting of breakout group discussions	Plenary reporting		Plenary reporting: Rapporteurs
04:50 PM	10 minutes	Summary of discussion and key takeaways	Plenary presentation	Ask participants to answer menti/ padlet Summary of discussion, key takeaways, quotable quotes from participants Overview of day 2 sessions	AFA - Esther Penunia
5:00PM	End of program

Day 2: Policy and Inclusive Governance Mechanisms to Strengthen CT Recognition and Food Security and Traditional Livelihoods in the ASEAN Region

Starting time: 02:00 PM Philippine time

Duration: 2 hours, 30 minutes (program proper, not including breaks)

Main host: Lanz Espacio, AFA

Time	Duration	Session	Format	Content/ Discussion Questions	Speaker/ Facilitator
01:30 PM	30 minutes	Setting up and testing the connections with speakers and translators	n/a	n/a	Technical team
02:00 PM	10 minutes	Setting the scene: Introduction	Plenary		AFA - Myline Macabuhay
02:10 PM	Presentation 1: 15 minutes Presentation 2: 7 minutes each Total: 45 minutes	Session 2. Policy and Inclusive Governance Mechanisms to Strengthen CT Recognition, Food Security and Traditional Livelihoods - Presentation 1. Existing policies on CT recognition, food security and traditional livelihoods in the ASEAN and their alignment to VGGT, RAI and SDGs; policy recommendations - Presentation 2. Case studies of inclusive governance mechanisms promoting CT recognition, food security and traditional livelihoods (3 sets) - Q&A	Plenary presentations	Presentation 1 Existing policies on CT recognition, food security and traditional livelihoods in the ASEAN region National commitments/ declarations relating to VGGT, SDG, RAI and status of their adoption Best practices and policy recommendations Presentation 2. Background/ overview of the issue/ situation Intervention and analysis of impacts (core elements of inclusive governance mechanism; how CT is promoted/ improved through governance mechanism; facilitating and hindering factors) Alignment with VGGT, RAI, SDG principles	Presentation 1. AFA - Riza Bernabe Presentation 2. RMI - Wahyubinatara Fernandez RECOFTC Cambodia - Tol Sokchea NLRF - Prem Napali
03:00 PM	Presentation 1: 6 minutes Presentation 2: 8 minutes Total: 15 minutes	Session 3. The Role of Data in Promoting CT Recognition and Food Security in the ASEAN Region Presentation 1. Overview of the LMI; land grabs and tenure (LMI AR III) Presentation 2. Large-scale land acquisitions (LSLAs) and impacts to local communities in SEA Q&A	Plenary presentation	Presentation 1. Insights from: Introduction to the Land Matrix Initiative Land grabs and tenure global/ regional trends (LMI AR III) Presentation 2. Overview of LSLAs in SEA (2021 data) Socioeconomic impacts to local community (findings from the palm oil report)	Presentation 1. CDE - Markus Giger Presentation 2. AFA - Danikka Rivera
03:15 PM	15 minutes	Break		Intermission (video)
03:30 PM	Breakout group – 30 minutes Plenary reporting – 5 minutes each Total: 1 hour	Session 4. Policy and Inclusive Governance Mechanisms to Strengthen CT Recognition, Food Security and Traditional Livelihoods - Breakout group discussion to discuss policy elements needed for the ASEAN Guidelines - Plenary reporting	Breakout group	Guide questions: Are there similarities/ differences between the existing policies on CT recognition among ASEAN countries? What are the challenges/ opportunities in using VGGT, RAI, SDGs in promoting CT recognition and food security in ASEAN Member States? What are the elements/ provisions needed to be highlighted in the ASEAN Guidelines for CT Recognition?	Breakout groups: National-level (if there is at least 7 participants for each country) English breakout group - for participants from regional/ global organizations Facilitators Case study researchers Note-takers: tbc
04:30	10 minutes	Summary of discussion and key takeaways Overview of day 3	Plenary presentation	Ask participants to answer menti/ padlet Summary of discussion, key takeaways, quotable quotes from participants Overview of day 2 sessions	AFA – Juneliza Pandela
4:40PM	End of program

Day 3: Development of the Zero Draft of the ASEAN Guidelines for CT Recognition

Starting time: 02:00 Philippine time

Duration: 2 hours, 30 minutes (program proper, not including breaks)

Main host: Lanz Espacio, AFA

Time	Time/ Duration	Session	Format	Content/ Discussion Questions	Speaker/ Facilitator
01:30 PM	30 minutes	Setting up and testing the connections with speakers and translators	n/a	n/a	Technical team
02:00 PM	10 minutes	Setting the scene: Introduction	Plenary		AFA - Myline Macabuhay
02:10 PM	Presentation 1: 10 minutes Presentation 2: 15 minutes Q&A: 5 minutes	Session 5. Development of the Zero Draft of the ASEAN Guidelines for CT Recognition Presentation 1. Process in Finalizing ASEAN Guidelines for CT Recognition; Presentation 2. Zero Draft of the ASEAN Guidelines for CT Recognition Q&A	Plenary presentation	Presentation 1: Step-by-step process in developing and finalizing the ASEAN Guidelines Presentation 2. Provisions of the zero draft	Presentation 1. NTFP-EP - Dazzle Labapis Presentation 2. NTFP-EP - Atty. Edna Maguigad
02:45 PM	Breakout group: 45 minutes Total: 45 minutes	Session 5. Review of the Zero Draft of the ASEAN Guidelines for CT Recognition (cont) - Breakout group discussion	Breakout group	Guide Questions Note: Breakout group to review the zero draft line-by-line Comments/ questions/ suggestions to the zero draft What are the strategies or key actions needed to support the finalization and adoption of the ASEAN Guidelines on CT Recognition? Who are the stakeholders that need to be involved/ targeted in the process?	Breakout groups: National-level (if there is at least 7 participants for each country) English breakout group - for participants from regional/ global organizations AMS breakout group representatives Facilitators Case study researchers AFA/ NTFP-EP – AMS representatives Note-takers: tbc
03:30 PM	15 minutes	Break		Intermission (video)
03:45 PM	Plenary reporting: 5 minutes each Total: 30 minutes	Session 5. Review of the Zero Draft of the ASEAN Guidelines for CT Recognition (cont) - Plenary reporting	Plenary reporting	Guide Questions: Highlights of breakout group discussions	Rapporteurs
04:15 PM	15 minutes	Summary of discussion and key takeaways and action points	Plenary presentation	Crowdsourcing response through Menti/ Padlet platforms What can each participants commit to support the finalization and adoption of the ASEAN Guidelines on CT Recognition? Summary of discussion: Key takeaways and quotable quotes from participants Core elements to be included in the zero draft Key action points to be done	AFA - Myline Macabuhay AFA – Riza Bernabe
04:30 PM	30 minutes	Closing activities Closing remarks		Provide regional perspective	Representatives from: ASEAN Secretariat AWG-SF MRLG - Natalie Campbell NTFP-EP - Femy Pinto AFA - Esther Penunia
5:00PM	End of program

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