Since Karamoja is richly endowed with gold, marble, iron ore, tungsten, limestone, oil and gas, it has attracted many investors, in particular since the protracted  armed conflicts in northern Uganda started fading away. Approximately  1 7,000 km2 or 62% of the total land area of Karamoja has been licensed for mineral  exploration  and exploitation (Kabiswa, 2014).

The ways in which people obtain land in Uganda are changing fast. Land that used to be secured through inheritance, gifts or proof of long-term occupancy is now more commonly changing hands in the market. Those with wealth and powerful connections are frequently able to override local rules and gain access to land at the expense of poorer individuals. Government-backed agribusiness investors receive large areas of land with benefits for some local farmers who are able to participate in the schemes, while other smallholders see their land access and livelihoods degraded.

Municipal commonage, used as a common resource for communities, poses a unique opportunity for rural development and land and agrarian reform. The law says that municipal commonage must be used to contribute towards land reform. It must be made available for agricultural purposes to those who were previously excluded from accessing commonages.

Poor town residents who want to engage in agricultural activities must therefore organise to demand access to municipal commonage. This booklet will help you to understand the law, access commonage and use commonage. 

[AFR] Munisipale meentgrond skep ’n unieke geleentheid vir landelike ontwikkeling en grond- en agrariese hervorming. Wetgewing bepaal dat munisipale meentgrond moet bydra tot grondhervorming. Meente moet beskikbaar gemaak word vir landboudoeleindes vir diegene wat voorheen toegang tot die soort grond ontsê is. Arm dorpsinwoners wat wil deelneem aan landbou, moet saamspan om toegang tot munisipale meentgrond op te eis.

[XHOSA} Umhlaba wesisa kamasipala lusiphathela ithuba elilodwa lophuhliso lwamaphandle nohlaziyo kwezemihlaba nezolimo. Umthetho usixelela ukuba umhlaba wesisa kamasipala kufuneka ube negalelo kuhlaziyo kwezemihlaba apho uthi wenziwe ufumaneke ukuze usetyenziselwe ulimo ngabo babesakuya bengavumelekanga kwixa langaphambili ukuba

bafumane imihlaba yeziza zikamasipala. Abahlali basezidolophini abahluphekileyo nabanqwenela

ukuzibandakanya kwiinkuthalo zolimo kufuneka ngoko bacebe ukwenza amabango okufumana umhlaba wesisa kamasipala.

[ENG] 

Legally recognized and secure land and resource rights are fundamental to the advancement of global peace, prosperity, and sustainability. From the development of human cultures to the realization of democracy itself, tenure security underpins the very fabric of human society and our relationship to the natural environment. Today, insecure tenure rights threaten the livelihoods and wellbeing of a third of the world’s population, and with it, the very future of our planet.

This paper analyzes whether national laws acknowledge indigenous peoples and other rural communities in 100 countries as owners of waters that arise within their lands. Results derive from information collected by LandMark to score the legal status of community land tenure. Findings are positive; half of all countries recognize communities as lawful possessors of water on their lands. Three quarters permit communities to manage the distribution and use of water on their lands.

This report provides information on due diligence and effective conflict management through consultation in the context of community land conflicts. It identifies some key steps to follow to integrate community land conflict into enhanced project risk assessments.

This brief presents a review of 161 Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) submitted on behalf of 188 countries3 for COP 21 to determine the extent to which Parties made clear commitments to strengthen or expand the tenure and natural resource management rights of IP/LCs as part of their climate change mitigation plans or associated adaptation actions.4 Of the 161 INDCs submitted, 131 are from countries with tropical and subtropical forests.

Residents of mining areas testified at the Parliamentary High-Level panel on assessment of key legislation and acceleration of fundamental change about the acute disruptions caused in their lives and livelihoods by mining and their concerns are dealt with in several recommended amendments to legislation.

The pleas of thousands of rural people who made difficult journeys to attend public hearings across the country are largely ignored in the amended version of the Traditional and Khoi-San Leadership Bill set to be adopted by the National Assembly this week.

Parliament is processing, or is due to process, six bills that have particular significance for the rights of people living in SA’s former homelands. Three draft bills have also been published for comment. Among these are the Traditional Leadership and Governance Framework Amendment Bill and the Traditional and Khoi-San Leadership Bill, which together echo and seek to entrench important aspects of the Bantu Authorities Act that shaped apartheid.