24 June 2013: In an effort to share the lessons countries have learned from using tools to deal with land disputes in post-conflict settings, UN-HABITAT organized the ‘Workshop on land disputes resolution: learning from country experiences’, in Nairobi, Kenya from 11-13 June 2013.

Participants included representatives from Liberia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Sudan and Somalia, as well as from the Urban Legislation, Land and Governance, and the Urban Risk Reduction and Rehabilitation branches of UN-HABITAT.

UN-HABITAT outlined a land conflict resolution project in the DRC and its role in achieving peace in post conflict countries, describing the use of a Land Mediation Guide and its Land Conflict Mediation Database. Liberia shared experiences of the Liberia Land Commission, which proposes, advocates and coordinates land policy and laws. The Somalia representative outlined the application of Guiding Principles on Relocation, which was used to “keep the human face” on programs for land redistribution in urban centers.

The workshop served as a foundation for UN-HABITAT’s development of knowledge exchange programs. [UN-Habitat Press Release] [DRC Land Project] [UN-Habitat Land Tenure]