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PRESENTATION BY KHAMLA PHOUTHARATHPROJECT MANAGER
RIGHTS-LINK LAO (LAND INFORMATION NETWORKING ANDKNOWLEDGE)
New weapons of the weak :Information, networking and
knowledge. Tools for improving landrights of local people
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Contents
Overview of VFIOverview of land issues in Laos
General Laos and land management
Key issues related to landImproving information and awareness on legalrights
Land use planning-land-titling
Communication and networking to influence policy Through legal channels
Lessons for consideration/Challenges
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- Began working in Laos in January 2001- In partnership with the Global Association for
people and the Environment (GAPE)
- In 2003 MOU with the Salavan Provincial Office of Agriculture and Forestry
- In 2005 MOU with Non-Formal Education of Ministry of Education
- In 2009 began receiving support for Rights-LINK Lao project which focus on Land Rights andNatural Resource Management.
VFI BACKGROUNDVFI BACKGROUND
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Protection andEmpowerment for Women
and Children Program
Health,Health,Education andEducation and
LeadershipLeadership(HEAL)(HEAL)
Land andLand andLivelihoodsLivelihoods
(L&L)(L&L)
The integrated VILLAGE FOCUS developmentconceptVFI Laos
Training Centers
Training Centers
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STAFFSTAFFIn 2000 VFI Laos had only employees. Since then
we have grown to 47 full time staff, a youth groupwith 8 members, Rights-LINK project with 15members and more than 20 farmer trainers and a
number of adult literacy and health volunteersengaged on short term contracts.
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Target AreasTarget Areas
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Greater mekong sub regionLaos: from land locked to land linked
From Economically isolated to the battery of asia
Thailand(1,835 km inthe west)
Cambodia(435 km in
the south)
China (505 kmin the north)
Myanmar (236km in the north-west)
Vietnam
(2,069 km inthe east)
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Land and Forest Cover
23 million ha in total9.8 million hectares of forest area includingplantation forests
Around 5 million ha of agriculture land70% mountainouscountry
High biodiversity spotsand potential forgreen-development(tourism, REDD, etc)
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Socio Economic Overview
Population: 5.6 millionPopulation density: 24 km 2Religion: 80% BuddhismMore than 41 ethnic groups,no indigenous people as such.Everyone has same rights onpaperGDP: 500 USD (2006)
Poverty high in upland areas
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Policy and legal aspects of land and naturalresource management
Overlapping laws in relation to land and natural resourcemanagement, which creates confusion and competition
between ministries.Inflexible policies and laws on land management that donot take into account the local level realities and place local
populations in a disadvantaged position.The interest of policy and law makers in more precise and
nuanced information to understand the costs and benefits of different options and make more informed decisions
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Key issues and gaps related community rights toland/ land on tenure
Farmers and communities have no legalrights to land
Land use planning has yet to be done Land titling still to be carried in rural areas Uncertain how communal land will be dealt with
Increasing land use conflicts. Lack of local staff and leader capacity. Lack of coordination amongst all
stakeholders Farmers and communities lack mechanisms
to seek recourse to problems
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Three strategies for improvingcommunities access and control over land
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Land use planning, titling and communalland titling
Working with government and NGOs to implementnew land use planning process in target provinces
Trying to act as bridge between MAF and NLMA along with other NGOs
PLUP/LA to lead to individual and communaltitlingThis would be followed up with community based
NRM (Forestry, etc) to ensure communities areempowered to protect and manage their resourcesTesting out approaches to land management at thesub-district level to create local networks
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Working with and through a number of national networks: Land Issues Working Group (LIWG)
Working with and through LIWG consortium of NGOs committed toimproving land rights of local people.
LIWG acts as a platform for NGOs to work collectively with theGovernment on different areas
Carried out studies and workshops related to land issues Currently working with Gov. to implement new PLUP/La Regulations
MIC-MAC, Gender Development Working Group
and Mak Phet (Chili Group) which are working onland related issues Rights-LINK supporting establishment of
network for 5 southern provinces where land
issues are most pressing
Networking
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Information and Knowledge
Rights LINK is establishing the LINK Centre which will be a space for :accessing information (Digital and physical) on land andnatural resource managementSeeking advice and consultation (Lao Bar to set upconsultation area)Dialogue on land related issues, particularly workshops,debates and activitiesCenter will open up before December welcome all fromregion to visit!
Carrying out collaborative research to gain better understanding of land related issues with NAFRI, NUOL and other researchagencies (and foreign researchers).
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Communication and dissemination
Producing materials on land and legal rightsSupporting the production of best practices from other NGOsand agencies to be disseminated widely Production of the Legal guidebook on Village rights andresponsibilities to manage land and forest resources
Developing case study series on land conflicts and issuesWorking with CIDSE to translate key documents from differentcountries to provide to Lao policy markers.Developing Law Calendar with CIDSE, JVC and VFI
CommunicationPolicy group to be established to link more directly with policymakers in key ministriesEstablishing partnership with Lao Radio and LNTV to have showon land rights and responsibilities
Will establish Lao Land Information discussion group
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Legal Support
Accessing recourse through legal channels is justbeginning in Lao many different organizationsnow partnering up with Faculty of Law and LaoBar Association to improve legal understanding at
the local level through barefoot lawyersVFI is currently focusing on:Supporting law students to carry out paralegal courses atthe village level
Developing conflict management materials and trainingAccess to justice survey with Lao Bar associationDeveloping understanding about legal ways to supportcommunal land titling
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Challenges
Developing policy makers awareness andunderstanding of local issues and concerns andhow they can be solved
Empowering local people to protect their rights interms of land issues and natural resourcemanagement.
Capacity of government to manage land in fastchanging environment Overlap of performance among the government
partners at all levels Transparent procedures are in place and staff have
capacity to implement Staff have ability to enforce and monitor (legally and
empowered to do so)
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Thank You
Thank you !
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