Guiding Principles:
Land Tenure in Development Cooperation

Orientierungsrahmen:
Bodenrecht und Bodenordnung

Deutsche Gesellschaft
für Technische Zusammenarbeit
Abt. 45 / Div. 45

A land policy which is rational and transparent to the population must fulfill particular conditions. It must be based on fundamental guiding principles, it must follow clearly defined, in part universal and in part country-, region- or group-specific valid objectives. Its target conflicts must be made public. A bundle of far-reaching non-contradictory land policy instruments should be developed from them. The instruments' direct and indirect effects should be recognized as comprehensively as possible.

• Centralised government institutions and their authoritarian practices

• Liberalisation of the public sector and decentralisation of the institutional structure

• dominance of state institutions and excessive regulations on interactions between the various stakeholders

• partnership and deconcentration

• paternalistic practices of decision making

• active participation of beneficiaries and those affected in decision-making processes

• political and institutional corruption (land grabbing, monopolisation of power, patronage, lack of moral accountability)

• auditing of government agencies to ensure social and professional accountability and effective disciplinary measures

• uncertainty of land tenure

• land tenure security

• contradictory laws

• comprehensive land legislation

• inaccessible land dispute structure and lack of finality in the resolution of land disputes

• linking traditional rules and traditional advocacy associations with the judicial system

• autochthonous land tenure system versus individualised property and statutory law

• flexible multiple land tenure arrangements

• gender inequality

• gender-sensitive approach and participation

• dissipation of local expertise

• co-evolution of local, regional and national and international capacity

• monopolised information policy, rivalry and reluctance to part with power

• transparency, easy access to land-related information, fostering of synergetic effects through incentives and networking

• playing donors off against one another

• commitment and complementary international partnership

Development cooperation can be an important contribution to the formulation of policies when the partner explicitly requests it, and it can reduce the danger of policy failure along with the negative effects on economic efficiency, social equality and preserving the natural environment. Development cooperation supports approaches to reformation processes especially when they contribute to implementation of action plans from international conventions (Agenda 21) and the development cooperation principles of democracy development, rule of law, decentralization and combating poverty alleviation.