The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) has published the ‘Voluntary Guidelines on Tenure Governance Initiative' newsletter for March 2015.
The newsletter highlights stories from the field, using the ‘Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security' in Kasese, Uganda, where tenure security is being improved, especially for the poor, vulnerable and marginalized groups, with a specific focus on women, girls and youth.
March 2015: The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) has published the ‘Voluntary Guidelines on Tenure Governance Initiative’ newsletter for March 2015. The newsletter highlights stories from the field, using the ‘Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security’ in Kasese, Uganda, where tenure security is being improved, especially for the poor, vulnerable and marginalized groups, with a specific focus on women, girls and youth.
The newsletter also summarizes outcomes of national workshops on the Voluntary Guidelines in Gabon and Uganda. Participants at the Gabon workshop, held from 14-16 January, agreed to create a multi-sectoral committee to continue aiming for improved governance of tenure and to formulate a cross-sectoral strategy for implementation of the Guidelines. At the Uganda workshop, held from 27-29 January, participants came up with recommendations on the way forward in the form of a declaration.
Another meeting held in February on indigenous food systems, agroecology and the Guidelines brought together over 20 indigenous peoples’ representatives and experts to discuss the role of indigenous peoples in implementing the Guidelines. Participants stressed the urgency of putting the Guidelines into practice as soon as possible to protect and strengthen the tenure rights of indigenous peoples; and agreed on actions for safeguarding indigenous peoples’ rights and on establishing collaborative linkages between indigenous peoples and FAO, including setting up a crosscutting working group on indigenous food systems.
The newsletter also describes partnerships, such as with ActionAid, which is raising awareness in 21 countries about the Guidelines and helping vulnerable communities use them to protect tenure rights and food security. Regarding technical publications, the newsletter mentions: an e-learning course that addresses tenure issues in the context of natural disasters; and a technical guide on ‘Improving Governance of Forest Tenure,’ which is now available in French, in addition to English and Spanish. [March 2015 Newsletter: Voluntary Guidelines on Tenure Governance Initiative]