26 January 2016: A multi-year joint project implemented by the Russian Federation’s Federal Service for State Registration, Cadastre and Cartography (Rosreestr) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO), with funding from the World Bank, has introduced an online system to simplify property registration and tracking across the country.

During a project meeting held at FAO Headquarters, in Rome, Italy, Marcela Villarreal, Director of FAO’s Partnership, Advocacy and Capacity Development Division, said the 15-year project had implemented “the biggest unified cadastre and registration IT system in the world.” She noted that the project’s best practices and know-how could be applied to other countries of Eastern Europe and Central Asia and around the globe.

Igor Vasiliev, head of Rosreestr, credited the international partnership for Russia’s improved ranking on the World Bank Group’s ‘Doing Business’ rating – measured by the ease of real property registration – noting Rosreestr moved up from the 51st place in 2011 to the 8th place in 2016 “thereby increasing the investment attractiveness of our economy.”

At the meeting, Rosreestr and FAO identified several priority areas for future collaboration, including capacity development, joint innovation projects related to improving property valuation and methodology, and the use of high resolution satellite imagery, unmanned aerial vehicles and crowdsourcing platforms. FAO also confirmed its interest in joining forces with various partners to support the country’s implementation of the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security (Voluntary Guidelines). [FAO Press Release]