News on Land

We are in the midst of a global environmental crisis and the sense of urgency becomes ever more evident with each additional story of climate disasters, ecological tipping points and climate records being shattered somewhere in the world.

At this moment, global representatives are gathering at the 25th Conference of the Parties (COP25) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Madrid to discuss immediate steps in halting further climate crisis.

Uganda’s tradition of “customary” land ownership means many landowners don’t hold titles to their property, and land disputes are rampant. With little faith in police or courts, Ugandans have turned to mob justice – and landowners fear for their lives.

In Uganda, people are increasingly taking the law into their own hands. Citizens say a flawed justice system and weak law enforcement are to blame for the rise in “mob justice.” This weekly series explores Uganda’s mob justice phenomenon. Is there a solution in sight?

We can’t tackle the climate crisis without tackling corruption.

Ignoring environmental laws in Timor-Leste to build a petroleum infrastructure project could mean serious problems for communities including environmental destruction, loss of land, and loss of livelihoods. Communities are already facing some of these problems because project proponents haven’t fulfilled their legal obligations to do extensive environmental research and planning to mitigate any damage to the local environment.

• Both the climate crisis and inequality require a democratic overhaul. And governments globally should start by turning over legal control of land and natural resources to local communities and indigenous land users. Their rights are key to survival for all of us.

Based on Chinese law, individuals cannot claim land ownership. In rural regions, most land is owned collectively, while in urban areas, by the state. 

China's 560 million rural residents, taking up around 40 percent of the country's total population, contract land for a fixed period of time – usually 30 years – from rural communities, and maintain rights to use and manage the land. 

The 2019 Conference on Land Policy in Africa ended in Abidjan Friday November 29th with academic institutions pledging to work with traditional leaders in coming up with solutions to land governance challenges on the continent in an effort to root corruption out of the land sector.

Stakeholders attending the five-day conference made various calls at the end of the meeting but perhaps the most profound one was by the continent’s traditional leaders who made a commitment to review cultural practices and beliefs that have long denied women access to land.

ADDIS ABEBA – The African Union (AU) Declaration on Land Issues and Challenges, the AU Declaration of committing 2010 – 2020 as the African Women’s Decade and the AU 30 per cent target for documented land rights in women’s names by 2025, are important messages from leaders on the continent that empowering women through tenure security is a necessary condition for equity and the socioeconomic and agricultural transformation of Africa.

Experts attending this year’s conference on Land Policy in African have called for fair and efficient land management to support moves to transform the continent.

The third edition of the conference on Land Policy in Africa, currently underway in the Ivorian capital, Abidjan is co-organized by the African Union, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa and the African Development Bank.

Nearly half of video games include in-game purchase options, fuelling a spending spree on virtual goods and a debate on what property rights are held over the digital assets

LONDON - Jon Jacobs was a financially struggling actor in real life but a wealthy trader in an online video game when he had his breakthrough: what if he could turn his virtual success into a steady stream of real dollars?

African countries must act faster to purge corruption in the land sector by harnessing technology and innovation, African Development Bank Senior Vice President Charles Boamah urged on Monday.

Boamah, who was speaking to policymakers and stakeholders at a conference on Land Policy in Africa in the Ivorian capital, Abidjan, also called for the deployment of more financial and human resources to land policy development, “especially in rural areas and among the most vulnerable, including women.”

In the last ten years, the Land Portal has grown from being ‘simply’ a gateway to better access land data and information that is fragmented across the web, to a trusted knowledge broker that makes a difference by emphasizing data use and impact. In this time, we have accompanied our users to interact with land data in the ways that suit them best. We have told data stories, so that easily digestible content and context behind land and property rights data can be provided.