1.
7th Capitalization Meeting
EU Land Governance Programme
FAO
Rome, Italy
26 – 29 June, 2018
Abdirahman Issack
FAO, Sudan

2.
7th Capitalization Meeting
EU Land Governance Programme
PROMOTING THE PROVISION OF LEGITIMATE LAND
TENURE RIGHTS USING VGGT IN THE CONTEXT OF
NATIONAL FOOD SECURITY IN THE GREATER
DARFUR REGION OF SUDAN
‫حوكــمة‬ ‫تطوير‬‫حيازة‬‫الطوعية‬ ‫الموجـــهات‬ ‫بإستخدام‬ ‫األرض‬
‫الغــابات‬ ‫و‬ ‫السمــكية‬ ‫الموارد‬ ‫و‬ ‫األرض‬ ‫حوكــمة‬ ‫في‬ ‫المسؤولة‬
‫دارفور‬ ‫بواليات‬ ‫القومي‬ ‫الغذائي‬ ‫األمن‬ ‫سياق‬ ‫في‬
‫الغابات‬ ‫و‬ ‫الزراعة‬ ‫وزارة‬ ‫مع‬ ‫بالتعاون‬

3.
7th Capitalization Meeting
EU Land Governance Programme
Background
• Historically, overlapping rights on land use and land tenure systems was governed
through customary means in Darfur,
• Nationalization of un-registered lands and disbandment of customary institutions
without an alternative created vacuum in the provision, protection and promotion
of tenure rights and social justices related to land disputes,
• Competition over land resources continue to be ungoverned creating conflict
among users,
• Mistrust between state actors and Darfur communities widened- Government
actions always perceived with suspicion and of bad intent,
• On-going conflict in Darfur lead to fallout of law and order and displacement of
rural farmers and empowerment of nomadic pastoralists,
• Under the current state, either the government or customary institutions nor any
other actors alone is able to bring a solution to the complex realities of land tenure
governance in Darfur,

4.
7th Capitalization Meeting
EU Land Governance Programme
Background
• In 2014, , the former Minister for Agriculture made a special request to the FAO
Director-General for the roll-out of Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible
Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National
Food Security (VGGT) in the Sudan
• In response, FAO-Sudan developed the project with stakeholders,
• Through European Union (EU) financial support, the project expects to achieve the
following impact, outcome and objectives through implementing series of activities
under four outputs.
Impact:
Mechanisms for land tenure governance are strengthened through the mainstreaming
of VGGT principles within land policies, specifically in Darfur.
Outcome:
Enable the people of Darfur to appropriately and transparently manage their fragile
land resources and achieve peaceful and sustainable development.

5.
7th Capitalization Meeting
EU Land Governance Programme
Background
Objective:
• To support the Government of the Republic of the Sudan to reform its land laws;
• To develop practical solutions to secure access to and use of crop land, livestock routes,
range and pastures including the provision of adequate and practical dispute resolution
mechanisms;
• To assist land service providing institutions (locality, state and federal) to promote the
provision for legitimate land tenure rights of conflict displaced communities including
small-scale rural farmers, pastoralist and IDPs in Darfur region.

6.
7th Capitalization Meeting
EU Land Governance Programme
Background
Outputs:
1. Effective enabling environment established for rural social stability,
2. Competition over land resources reduced and the fragile environment sustainably
governed,
3. Voluntary return of conflict-displaced people in the Darfur Region facilitated and
basic services enhanced in return sites.
4. Operational Framework for Land Tenure is developed based on VGGT principles.

7.
Background
Project Duration: 3 Years
Start Date: 6th May 2016
End Date: 6th May 2019
Geographic Coverage: Five Darfur States
Localities Targeted: 20 localities and 5
return sites (4
localities and 1 return
site in each state)
Budget: 3 Million Euro
7th Capitalization Meeting
EU Land Governance Programme

8.
7th Capitalization Meeting
EU Land Governance Programme
Progress
• Working relations between project key stakeholders enhanced,
• Negotiations to resolve community land disputes facilitated,
• Capacities of Community based peace negotiation platforms (CBPNPs) enhanced,
• Baseline data collected and community resources mapped through participatory
methods,
• Return sites identified and Darfur states enacting policies that facilitates return of IDPs,
• VGGT tools adopted as bases to implement land tenure governance by some states
using own resources,
• Recruitment of consultants to assess land laws and policies that affect land tenure
systems and land administration in Sudan in progress.

9.
7th Capitalization Meeting
EU Land Governance Programme
Capacity Development Activities
• General understanding of STTs and LAGs members on the project and Voluntary
Guideline (VGGT) enhanced.
• The training workshops helped create awareness on the project operational plan that
guided actions in each state.
• STT and LAGs members integrated VGGT principles into their daily duties to advance
land service provision including addressing dispute and conflict resolution.

10.
7th Capitalization Meeting
EU Land Governance Programme
Capacity Development Activities
State level trainings
No. State Training Topic Target Group Total Female Male
1 North Darfur 1. Orientation on project
implementation
2. Introduction to the
Responsible
Governance of Tenure
3. Addressing Disputes
and Conflicts over the
Tenure of Natural
Resources
4. How to monitor and
promote policy
changes on
governance of tenure
State Technical Team
Members:
Director Generals (DGs) of
state Ministries of
Agriculture, Livestock,
Physical Planning, Justice
(Department of Land
registration), National Forest
Corporation, Darfur Land
Commission, Local
governance and Native
Administration (community
leaders)
14 1 13
2 West Darfur 13 1 12
3 East Darfur 14 0 14
4 South Darfur 11 1 10
10 0 10
5 Central Darfur
Total 62 3 59

11.
7th Capitalization Meeting
EU Land Governance Programme
Capacity Development Activities
State level trainings
No Location Training Topic Number of People trained Total
1 State Locality Training Dates Men Women
South Darfur Al Salam 19-20th Feb
2018
1. Orientation on project
implementation
2. Introduction to the
Responsible Governance
of Tenure
3. Addressing Disputes and
Conflicts over the Tenure
of Natural Resources
4. How to monitor and
promote policy changes
on governance of tenure
13 1 14
Al Wuhda 14 2 16
Mershing 21-22nd Feb
2018
16 4 20
Shatayia 10 1 11
2 East Darfur Yasin 26-27th Feb
2018
13 0 13
Abu Karinka 11 0 11
Asalayia 28-29th Feb
2018
12 1 13
Al Daein 13 0 13
3 North Darfur Mellit 19-20th Feb
2018
19 2 21
Tawila 12 1 13
Kutum 21-22nd Feb
2018
28 4 32
El Fasher Rural 10 1 11
4 West Darfur Sirba 26-27th Feb
2018
16 2 18
Jabal Moon 10 1 11
Habila 28-29th Feb
2018
9 1 10
Kulbus 11 1 12
5 Central Darfur West Jabal
Mara
4-5th April
2018
10 4 14
Um Dukhun 9 2 11
Azum 8-9th April
2018
13 3 16
Bindisi 17 1 18
Total Key LAG members trained in the 20 Darfur Localities 266 32 298

12.
7th Capitalization Meeting
EU Land Governance Programme
Challenges
 Sensitivity of land tenure issues in Darfur,
 Remoteness and accessibility of localities,
 Prevalence of insecurity and mistrust between different communities is the main deterrence to the
return of IDPs,
 Conflicting institutional policies and lack of coordination between and within land service providing
institutions and departments at state level,
 Limited logistical infrastructure for locality based land service providers personnel (both customary and
government),
 Limited institutional set-up and weak capacity to provide land services at localities as land related
services are centralized at state level,
 High government staff turnover, (10% of PAC members were changed in 2017 and 70% in 2018; while
turnover in STT members was about 38% in 2017 and 60% in 2018)
 Due to the political conflict over land in Darfur, right based approach of VGGT principles is viewed with

13.
7th Capitalization Meeting
EU Land Governance Programme
Lessons Learned
 Establishment of community of knowledge at federal, states and localities facilitated project
implementation,
 Understanding of VGGT tools by the state and locality government stakeholders is leading
new frontier in land tenure governance,
 Understanding the context of land tenure in specific localities enables targeting that reduces
cost and time.
 Establishment of direct communication between policy makers and communities facilitates
trust building, clears misconceptions and give space for communities to air their grievances on
land related issues,
 Disarmament program across Darfur have improved overall security situation and improved
access to project localities,
 Consistent political will of the government on land disputes resolution and protection of
tenure-holders rights facilitated return of IDPS and improves food security of conflict displaced
communities.

14.
7th Capitalization Meeting
EU Land Governance Programme
Recommendations
 When land related initiatives are supported by the political will of the government,
implementation towards success is guaranteed. Otherwise, when main government
institutions apply contradicting policies and give mix messages that undermine project
based efforts, progress is hard to reach.
 Transparent and inclusive consultation build trust among conflicting stakeholders and
ease barriers to success in implementing land tenure projects. However, this is time
consuming efforts and delays implementation as building consensus requires time.
 Understanding the context in which the project operates saves time and resources.
 Targeted capacity development for key stakeholder and their participation in project
implantation provides proxy influence to the improvement of land service delivery,
 It is also easier to implement land tenure project in an environment where institutions
providing land related service are decentralized and responsibilities are deconcentrated.

15.
7th Capitalization Meeting
EU Land Governance Programme
Next Steps
 Capacitate formal institutional structures to provide land registration and arbitrate land disputes.
 Facilitate development of Community land use action Plans and identify priority investment areas
through participatory approach,
 Facilitate development of a common strategy and implementation plan for voluntary return of IDPs –
Coordination with VRRCs,
 Conduct in-depth assessment of the existing land laws and policies that affect land tenure systems
and land administration in Darfur,
 Conduct Capacity Assessment of government institutions and individuals providing tenure services at
Federal, State and Locality levels
 Organize consultative workshop to present findings of the baseline, mapping and assessments on
institutional capacities, land laws and policies,
 Facilitate formulation of a policy that promotes rehabilitation and development of Darfur range and
pasture resources,
 Strengthen mechanisms for which community concern can be raised,

16.
Thank you!
7th Capitalization Meeting
EU Land Governance Programme
FAO
Rome, Italy
26 – 29 June, 2018