This document summarizes a land and water workshop held in Ethiopia from June 15-16, 2015 that took a rights-based approach to land and water governance in Africa. It discusses Oxfam's work on women's land rights, land tenure governance, responses to large-scale land investments, and engagement with partners like the African Union. It also outlines Oxfam's Global Water Governance Program focusing on the Mekong, Indus, and Limpopo river basins, and challenges in the Limpopo basin like unequal water access. Oxfam's solutions for the Limpopo include capacity building, linking communities, documenting best practices, and influencing policies to achieve more inclusive water governance.

1. LAND and water WORKSHOP
15th – 16TH June 2015
A right –based approach to
land and water Governance
in Africa

2. Bedria in Rift Valley, Ethiopia.
Went from being laborer to farming her own small land.

3. Global Land Program
• Vision: Marginalised women, men and
communities have obtained and are using
their power to advance, secure, and defend
their rights to the land they need for just and
equitable development,
– Active citizenship
– Policy reforms
– Implementation
– Private sector
– Access to justice
3

4. Women’s land dialogues
Kwambe Village Kilosa Tanzania.

5. Demographics – Africa is...
•Populous – 1.2 Billion people
•Female – 52%
•Youthful – Half of the population
•Growing – By 2050 2.4 Billion people

6. 6

7. POVERTY IN DEVELOPMENT
21
Countries 23 million
Middle Income
Extreme Poverty

8. Women and land in Africa
• Approx 10 percent of land held under statutory land
tenure (World Bank), customary land undocumented,
• Women contribute 60 to 80% food production, food
import bill was worth US$35 billion (excluding fish) in
2014,
• Estimated 60% of the world’s uncultivated arable land
is found in Africa; Forest cover approximately 200
million hectares,
• Gaps in gender desegregated data; women have
weaker land rights than men (e.g. 99% in Nigeria,
62% in Niger, 44% in Tanzania, Malawi 42% and
Uganda 34% in favour of male sole ownership
(IFPRI,2013).

10. Women’s Land Rights
• Women’s access, control and inheritance of
land: security of tenure and land governance
• Land conflicts (land not formalised, legal
pluralism – land laws versus religion and
culture),
• Respond to large scale land based investment
• Advocacy and influencing around policies and
practices
• Monitoring, evaluation and learning

11. At Oxfam...

12. Oxfam the Charity
Poor
People
Oxfam the Change Agent
Oppressor
VictimsCitizens
OxfamRescuerEnabler

13. Strategies
• Capacity building of civil society
• Alliance building for synergy and collective
voice,
• Advocacy, Research and Campaigns
• Critical engagement with stakeholders
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14. Contribute to global campaigns and
processes

15. Program Highlights
• Women’s Land rights – access, control and inheritance
• Land Tenure Governance – formal and informal
systems, global call to action campaign,
• Land grabs – support targeted communities,
• Behind the Brands – change policies on land
(companies supply chain e.g. Coca cola, Nesle, Illovo),
• Private sector including Multinational Financial
Institutions, Financial Intermediaries – human
rights/social and environmental safeguards and FPIC,
• UN CFS – discussion of VGGTs, inclusion in post 2015;
Responsible Agric Investment.
15

16. African Union
Land Policy
• AU Land Policy Initiative
• CSO Platform for engaging with
AU LPI launched in march 2014.
• Lobbying at the AU Joint
Ministerial Meeting, Pan Africa
Parliamentarian . Female Food
Heroes and Rural Women’s
Movements speak for
themselves.
• Input to LPI Gender Strategy

17. Valentina, in her Soya Bean field, near Kitwe Zambia

18. Program Location
• Oxfam has programming on land in over 40
countries including Burkina Faso, Burundi,
DRC, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Zambia,
Mauritania, Mozambique, Senegal, South
Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Niger,
Rwanda, South Africa, Colombia, Guatemala,
Honduras, India, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar,
Nepal, Pakistan, Paraguay, Sri Lanka,
Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam
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19. One drop at a time: water for
changing lives
Towards A Water Influencing Network (WIN) in
the Limpopo

20. Global Water Governance Program
The aim is for rural communities in river basins to
obtain their fair share of water resources which will
sustain their livelihoods.
Focus: 3 major river basins: the Mekong, Indus and
Limpopo.
• empowers organizations,
• builds networks,
• supports marginalized communities and individuals depending on
water resources, such as farmers and fishing communities, and
• helps sustain the ecosystem services provided by a healthy river
system.

21. Guiding principles
• Trans-boundary scale: an approach that goes beyond
provincial and national borders.
• Inclusive decision making
• Empowerment of women
• Rights and responsibilities
• Power of the people

22. Challenges in the Limpopo river basin
o Increasing water insecurity
o Unequal access to and distribution
of water
o Local people not having the
information and means to cope
with such challenges
o Limited linkage of planning with
local initiatives
o LIMCOM agreement was only
ratified recently and still limited
coordination between and
involvement of different actors

23. The ultimate goal of this
programme
Vulnerable communities in the Limpopo basin are informed,
empowered, and have equitable access to water through
inclusive water governance & appropriate water management
systems

24. Our ambition
‘In 2020 vulnerable communities in the Limpopo have a
fair share of water resources which sustain their
livelihoods.’
Informed and empowered
communities are organised
to manage their water
resources
Communities have secured
access to water through
appropriate water
management systems
An adequate policy and
institutional environment to
ensure equitable access to
water resources

25. Our solutions for the Limpopo
Evidence:
Sharing Reaserch &
best practices
Documentation &
dissemination
Model for upscaling
Assess knowledge
gaps at local level on
inclusive water
governance
Map of water
resources /
document learning
projects
Assess effective
models for upscaling
of inclusive water
governance
Implement showcase
projects at
community level on
effective approaches
on water governance
Documenting,
translating,
promoting and
dissiminating
evidence
Develop models for
upscaling evidence
(content and
promotion) based on
gap analysis
Partners: Oxfam,
KCS, Mahlalhe, CCM,
ADCR, Dabane
Partners: Oxfam,
Acacia Water, IWSD,
TNO, Ruzivo
Partners: TNO,
Acacia Water,
Dabane
To provide effective approaches on
community mobilisation and participation
in water governance

26. Our solutions for the Limpopo
Capacity Building Linking and learning Mobilisation and Influencing
Assess needs, gaps, priorities
and develop capacity building
plans
Develop MEL plan &
communications plan.
Stakeholder mapping,
awareness campaigns, event
calendar
Develop tools & trainings for
different stakeholder groups
Identifying and amplifying
voice of champions through
case studies & catchment
dialogues
Engage in platforms – at
national level and regionally
(LIMCOM)
Partners: CCM, ADCR, Oxfam ,
Mahlahlo, KCS, Dabane, IWSD,
Ruzivo, KCS
Oxfam, Ruzivo, IWSD, KCS Oxfam: Ruzivo, IWSD,
International Rivers
To build an effective network to make
water governance more inclusive

27. Our target groups
We will target and work with players at
different levels in order to be
successfull in reaching our goals:
o Communities and CBOs
o CSOs and NGOs
o Local and national water
authorities
o Private sector actors in water using
industries
o Regional (basin) authorities
(SADC, LIMCOM)
o Donors
o Knowledge institutes
o Existing networks & initiatives

28. Our Ambition in Land and Water
• To learn and share experiences from our work
• Women’s rights to land and water remain
central to our work
• Strengthen internal linkages between land and
water programs,
• Apply Oxfam tested strategies in land and
water governance, advocacy and influencing,
• Strengthen and establish strategic alliances,
networks and partnerships,
• Strengthen internal capacities – resources
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29. THANK YOU!