Land tenure issues are becoming increasingly important worldwide. Problems such as high population pressure, increases in resource degradation, food shortages, transformations of political systems and regional and supra-regional resource conflicts have brought the land issue to the public's attention.

Land tenure and land tenure systems are of fundamental importance for efficient agricultural production, stemming poverty and conflicts and attaining social equity. Thus, they are essential for securing enduring, self-supporting and sustainable development. Thus, ‘good governance’, participation, rule of law, certainty of the law, and access to productive resources, are (once again) of key importance for policy formulation and development cooperation.

These ‘guiding principles’ of "Land Tenure in Development Cooperation" are intended to be a contribution for applying German development cooperation options more effectively. That is, it should be used to improve the economic and social situation of the people in the partner countries and facilitate their participation making them a partner in the development process.

Problems of land tenure and land tenure systems demand answers to questions on the control of power, securing and the security of fundamental rights and the creation of prerequisites for long-term, productive investments. The form of land tenure and consistent land policies contribute towards future agricultural productivity worldwide, the many and diverse land uses in rural areas, the environmental impact thereof, and coping with the complex and dynamic processes of urbanization.

In the past years, Germany has actively supported international conventions and declarations which especially demand certainty of the law for land tenure and access to land for groups at a disadvantage. The most important agreements refer to the following:

• Agenda 21 (UNCED-Conference in Rio 1992)

• World Summit on Social Development (Copenhagen 1995)

• World Women's Conference (Beijing 1995)

• Habitat II Conference (Istanbul 1996)

• World Food Summit (Rome 1996)

In addition, the German-specific experiences after the reunification show how eminently important a land policy with efficient instruments for land administration and land development is to secure individual rights, to allow for state activities based on clearly defined rules and the promotion of private investment.

The ‘guiding principles’ are intended to systematize the discussion on land tenure and to generate specific technical knowledge of land tenure systems in the development policy discussion. It should facilitate decision making and provide the instruments for policy dialogue and project implementation. In addition, the critical discussion on goals, tasks and instruments of land policy in different social and cultural environments should be promoted in the ‘guiding principles’, and thus a contribution for further development of a future-oriented land policy be made.

The ‘guiding principles’ address all those committed to development cooperation. It should be considered a challenge and an opportunity to involve land tenure and its systems more in the development policy discussion and in project work. In view of the new, i.e. revived interest in the land issue and the rapid progress of insight, the present material can only be considered an interim balance, that is "work in progress".

This ‘guiding principles’ are the result of intense cooperation between the respective areas in the BMZ, KfW, GTZ and project partners.

The work of the GTZ was substantially designed and supported by an interdisciplinary scientific advisory board for "Land Tenure in Development Cooperation". Many thanks go to the members of the board. Special thanks also are extended to the project partners and field staff who contributed valuable experiences and contributions to the submitted ‘guiding principles’.