Towards Improved Land Governance

This paper starts from the assumption that the process of reform is as important as the content of the reform. Many excellent land policies, laws and technical reforms have been developed, yet, in many cases, implementation has slipped, stalled or has even been reversed. The paper argues that an understanding of land issues and the reform process from a governance and political economy perspective offers insights that can not only improve the design of reforms, but can also offer tools to support implementation. The paper, jointly developed by staff of FAO and UN-HABITAT, represents another contribution to the broader effort to understand land governance. As a joint paper, it seeks to recognize that land issues cannot be arbitrarily separated into rural or urban sectors such distinctions create artificial boundaries, which can impede a more holistic approach to the concept and issues. Governance is the exercise of political, economic and administrative authority in the management of a countrys affairs at all levels. Governance is a neutral concept comprising the complex mechanisms, processes and institutions through which citizens and groups articulate their interests, exercise their legal rights and obligations, and mediate their differences.

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