The purpose of the Ethiopia Land Administration to Nurture Development (LAND) program is to expand and extend two previously successful projects—Ethiopia Strengthening Land Tenure and Land Administration Program (ELTAP) implemented in 2005-2008 and Ethiopia Strengthening Land Administration Program (ELAP) implemented in 2008-2013 – financed by The United State Agency for International Development (USAID)/Ethiopia Mission and implemented by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and six regional states with technical assistance provided by Tetra Tech ARD. These projects helped strengthen rural land tenure security and women’s land use rights; encourage efficient land transactions; build the capacity of federal and regional land administration agencies to improve service delivery and pilot cadastral surveying and certification methodologies to recognize and document rural land use rights.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Institute of Land Administration of Bahir Dar University and Hawassa University finalized the inception reports and study tools for assessing implementation of the existing rural land laws of Amhara and SNNP regions.
To advance implementation of the recommendations contained in LAND’s Gender Assessment and Action Plan (GAAP), preparatory work was initiated to: (i) support raising awareness and training on gender issues in land laws and their implementation in SNNPR and Tigray regional states that will be conducted early in the next quarter; and (ii) establish a national Women’s Land Rights Taskforce for the purpose of advocating legislative improvements and implementation of existing legislative provisions to enhance and protect women’s land use rights.
LAND and the Ministry of Agriculture’s Land Administration and Use Directorate (MoA/LAUD) developed terms of reference to organize a workshop on the regional practices and the problems relating to valuation and compensation.
Drafts of five papers to be presented at the national workshop on land use policy were received and are being reviewed.
A training and orientation workshop was organized for 39 newly posted woreda and zonal officials from Afar regional state to inform them of the land use rights of pastoralists under the regional pastoral land laws and to prepare them for the impending LAND’s work in the region.
A two-day workshop on the pastoral land administration and use proclamation of Somali regional state was conducted for 19 woreda officials and land administration experts to create awareness on the pastoral land rights recognized under the region’s pastoral land administration proclamation.
The participatory local level land use planning manual previously produced by the MoA was revised by a consultant commissioned by LAND and the revision was discussed by federal and regional before finalization.
LAND technical staff provided two rounds of comments on the report produced by Michigan State University (MSU) on the market demand survey for LALU professionals and review of the curricula for training LALU professionals and technicians.
A local consultant was commissioned to provide capacity building training for EMA’s staff and prepare proposals for the short, medium and long-term development of the CORS system for the country. The consultant will conduct a needs assessment before the training and inspect the existing CORS stations.
LAND arranged for the admission of 42 federal and land administration staff from 9 regions and two city administrations to a summer M.Sc. training program by the Institute of Land Administration of Bahir Dar University.
The memorandum of association to establish the Ethiopian Land Research and Development Network (ETHIOLANDNET) was drafted and its concept note revised. The invitation to submit concept notes on 8 thematic areas of research on land issues to be financed under the LAND Grants Scheme was advertised in the papers. Thirty-two concept papers were received and 14 of them submitted by 12 institutions were short-listed to advance to the next cycle of submitting a detailed full technical and financial proposal.
LAND opened a field office in Yabello town, Borana Zone of Oromia Region. The Borana Zonal Oromia Pastoral Advisory Committee was established. It was not possible to establish the one for the Guji Zone due to security problems that arose from the conflict between the Guji and Borana ethnic groups.
LAND has teamed with the Institute of Pastoral and Agropastoral Studies of Haramaya University to assess the customary organization and management of pastoral communities in managing rangeland resources in Oromia regional state. The assessment team has finished its literature review and is preparing its inception report, including the field survey tools for focus group discussion and key informant interviews for the field work that will be started in August 2014.
Profiling of basic data important for land certification and registration was collected in Gomole, Malbe and Dire Dhedas in Borana zone. The profiling includes information on investment, mining, roads infrastructures, parks, ranches, NGOs operating in the area, government owned Productive Safety Net Project (PSNP) and Pastoral Community Development Project (PCDP), irrigation initiatives and livestock and human population data was conducted. In addition, zonal level livestock and population data and government’s water development plans for 2014/2015 and irrigation plans/designs were collected.
LAND conducted a three-day training on a result-based monitoring and evaluation for 19 staffs of the Ministry of Agriculture and regional LALU agencies to equip them with skills that enable them use M&E systems to provide continuous feedback on the extent, to which development programs and projects implemented by their organizations/agencies, are achieving their goals, identify potential problems at an early stage and propose possible solutions and improvements as needed.