Document Type: Progress Reports

The purpose of the Ethiopia Land Administration to Nurture Development (LAND) program is to expand and extend two previously successful projects—Ethiopia Strengthening Land Tenure and Land Administration Program (ELTAP) implemented in 2005-2008 and Ethiopia Strengthening Land Administration Program (ELAP) implemented in 2008-2013 – financed by The United States Agency for International Development (USAID)/Ethiopia Mission and implemented by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and six regional states with technical assistance provided by Tetra Tech ARD. These projects helped strengthen rural land tenure security and women’s land use rights; encourage efficient land transactions; build capacity of federal and regional land administration agencies to improve service delivery and pilot cadastral surveying and certification methodologies to recognize and document rural land use rights.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

During the reporting period, LAND made considerable progress on most project components.

Under Component 1 (Improved legal and policy frameworks at national and local levels)

LAND worked closely with the Oromia Rural Land Administration Bureau (OBERLEP) to develop the draft Oromia Pastoral Land Administration and Management Regulation that will recognize and protect land rights of pastoral communities. The LAND Property Rights Lawyer and legal experts from OBERLEP prepared legal analysis, explanatory notes and suggested language to enrich the draft regulation.

LAND finalized preparations to facilitate a national workshop to be held on October 20-21 to engage government decision makers in discussions highlighting the need for an overarching national land use policy to guide legislation that will ensure efficient use of land and protect natural resources. LAND engaged expert consultants who produced peer-reviewed policy papers that will be presented and discussed during the workshop to help pave the way for crafting the national land use policy.

Bahir Dar University delivered its draft report on the assessment of the implementation of the Amhara National Regional State (NRS) and their impacts. LAND provided editing comments and suggestions to strengthen the assessment report.

Under Component 2 (Strengthened capacity in national, regional, and local land administration and use planning)

LAND continued its support to build the capacity of federal and regional land administration and land use (LALU) professionals in cost-effective land use planning methodologies to develop national and regional master land use plans and local level land use plans that are envisioned in the Ministry of Agriculture’s Growth and Transformation Plan. I LAND developed a Trainer of Trainers methodology to build training capacity at the regional level to then be cascade to the woreda and kebele levels. LAND delivered a training module in conventional methods of land use planning and GIS and remote sensing to 260 regional trainers. The training will be cascaded in the coming quarter.

Bahir Dar, Haramaya, Hawassa and Mekelle Universities produced training manuals to strengthen capacity of land administration officials in their respective states to implement provisions in federal and regional states’ land administration and land use legislation. LAND has begun to support preparation of training manuals on the topics of Expropriation, Valuation, and Compensation.

Under Component 3 (Strengthened capacity of Ethiopian universities to engage in policy analysis and research related to land tenure and train land administration and land use professionals)

LAND partnered with Bahir Dar University’s Institute of Land Administration (ILA/BU) to offer a master’s degree program for federal and regional land administration professionals to build advanced skills. The first group of 41 professionals successfully completed the two summer course works, and are embarking on thesis research to earn their M.Sc. degree. The second group of 42 students began their studies also in the past year. Ethiopian Land Research and Development Network (ETHIOLANDNET) located at Bahir Dar University was established with LAND assistance and a three-year capacity strengthening grant. During the quarter it conducted its second annual general meeting in conjunction with the 7th Eastern Africa Land Administration Network annual general meeting that was hosted by the Institute of Land Administration of Bahir Dar University.

The six grantees awarded grants under LAND’s Competitive Research Grant Scheme are all making satisfactory progress to carry out research.

Under Component 4 (Strengthened community land rights in pastoral and agro-pastoral areas to facilitate market linkages and economic growth)

LAND provided technical and financial support to the Institute of Pastoral Studies of Haramaya University (IPAS/HU) to conduct the “Assessment of the Customary Land Administration and Natural Resource Management in the Pastoral Areas of the Oromia Regional State”. The assessment was requested by the OBERLEP to inform development of its draft regulation to recognize and secure pastoral land use rights. LAND facilitated a workshop with Oromia officials, community representatives, and other stakeholders to present and validate findings presented in the assessment report.

LAND also facilitated the Oromia Regional and Zonal Pastoral Advisory Committees meetings to discuss the appropriate geographic boundaries for certifying pastoral land use rights. Regional officials requested that LAND organize additional grassroots level consultations with pastoral communities.  LAND will assist the formation of technical committees in the Borana and Guji zones that will then conduct consultations in up to four locations in each zone. Consultative meetings will be conducted in two woredas in Guji Zone that were not included in previous consultations.

Terms of Reference were developed for a rapid assessment of the customary land administration and natural resources management in Amibara and Chifra woredas of the Afar National Regional State. The purpose of the assessment is to compile information on the customary organizational structure and the rules and regulations employed by the communities in the two woredas in managing natural resources including rangelands.

A team of experts comprising participants from the Ministry of Agriculture, the LAND project, and land administration agencies and bureaus of five National Regional States (Afar, Oromia, SNNP, Somali, and Gambela) participated in the study tour on land use planning and land tenure/governance issues in pastoral areas of Kenya and Tanzania. The purpose of the tour was to learn from the experiences of these countries to identify best practices potentially relevant to the Ethiopian context.

The purpose of the Ethiopia Land Administration to Nurture Development (LAND) program is to expand and extend two previously successful projects—Ethiopia Strengthening Land Tenure and Land Administration Program (ELTAP) implemented in 2005-2008 and Ethiopia Strengthening Land Administration Program (ELAP) implemented in 2008-2013 – financed by The United States Agency for International Development (USAID)/Ethiopia Mission and implemented by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and six regional states with technical assistance provided by Tetra Tech ARD. These projects helped strengthen rural land tenure security and women’s land use rights; encourage efficient land transactions; build capacity of federal and regional land administration agencies to improve service delivery and pilot cadastral surveying and certification methodologies to recognize and document rural land use rights.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The Institute of Land Administration of Bahir Dar University and Hawassa universities submitted their inception reports and field study instruments for assessment of the implementation of rural land laws in their respective regions. The field research has commenced. The law faculties of Bahir Dar, Haramaya, Mekelle, and Debub Universities were selected to prepare manuals on their respective region’s rural land laws which will be used for training and as a reference. In addition, Bahir Dar University will prepare the manual on federal land law and property rights, which would be used in all regional states.

A native Somali speaking consultant with experience of drafting legislation was selected to assist the Somali Regional State in drafting the region’s pastoral lands administration and use regulation. An agreement has been reached with the consultant and approval received from USAID on his engagement.

A committee composed of four MOA experts and LAND’s Property Rights Lawyer has been formally established to prepare the amended draft federal rural lands administration legislation. The Committee prepared a work plan and has started preliminary work.

Training was given to one zonal and 6 woreda officials of Afar regional state on the regional pastoral land administration and land use laws, which was conducted by the Afar regional Environmental Protection and Land Administration Agency in Awash town.

Planning for a workshop on practices of regional states in expropriation, valuation, and compensation of rural lands has commenced. The terms of reference were prepared and regional states requested to prepare papers on the practice and the problems encountered in their respective states.

LAND, in collaboration with Women’s Affairs Directorate of Ministry of Agriculture, conducted gender awareness raising workshops in Yirgalem town of SNNPR and Wukro town of Tigray Regional State. One Hundred participants attended the workshops of which 19 were women. The workshops aimed to shed light on some of the most critical gender issues in land legislations & enforcement in the respective regions. The participants discussed strengths and weakness of existing land policy and legislation in promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment.

A series of meetings were held on preparation of the papers for the national stakeholders’ workshop on national land use policy. LAND has provided comments on the draft papers and has been working with the writers to expedite their finalization. The date for the workshop is yet to be decided by the committee after the papers have been revised to the required standard.

A local consultant was hired to build the capacity of the Ethiopian Mapping Agency (EMA) in the area of establishing and operating continuous reference station (CORS). The consultant has produced a brief road map categorizing the activities into four agreed upon phases; i.e. (i) training and infrastructure needs assessment; (ii) preparation of training material and delivery of the training; (iii) making the existing four CORS operational; and (iv) preparation of a project proposal for CORS geodetic network development in Ethiopia. Accordingly, assessment of EMA’s staff competency and identification of the capacity needs for establishing and operating of CORS is completed and the reports is being reviewed by EMA. The consultant has begun drafting inception report and training materials.

LAND is building the capacity of federal and regional land administration and use professionals providing Training of Trainers (ToT) on GIS, remote sensing, participatory local level land use planning, and conventional land use planning. The ToT strategy is implemented in such a way that the federal and regional levels trainees cascade the trainings down to woreda level staff. Thirty-five federal and regional ToTs were trained on these courses during this quarter. They, in turn, trained a total of 237 experts of which only 17 were female. This is part of LAND’s effort to link the ToT training with the ongoing Sustainable Land Management Program II and the government’s regular programs in watershed conservation and management operating at the woreda and kebele level.

LAND, in collaboration with MSU and local consultant, has completed second round survey, which aimed at triangulating results of the report produced by MSU on the demand for land administration professionals. An intensive consultation was made with federal level stakeholders and universities. The surveyed data has been organized and interpreted. LAND plans to organize a participatory workshop to present report findings to key stakeholders once the final revised report is produced.

The process of establishing the Ethiopian Land Research and Development Network (ETHIOLANDNET) has reached its final stage. The concept note for the network was approved and the memorandum of association (MoA) for establishing the network adopted by the founding members. LAND and ILA/BDU will sign the sub-contract for operating the network, which is expected to be officially established in the next quarter.

Thirty-two concept papers were received in response to the Annual Program Statement (APS) issued by LAND its Competitive Grant Scheme (CGS). The CGS Review and Evaluation Committee (REC) selected 14 concept papers from 12 institutions to advance to the next stage of the process. The 12 short-listed institutions received orientation in developing responsive grant proposals and they submitted full proposals, which is being reviewed by the REC.

Guji Zone pastoral advisory committee (GZPAC) was established in late July 2014. The establishment of the committee had been delayed due to the conflict between Borana and Guji Oromos. The field trip of the Regional Oromia Pastoral Advisory Committee to Borana and Guji Zones was postponed to October 2o14 due to an unforeseen pressing assignment of some of the members.

A joint team of Haramaya University, Institute of Pastoral Studies (HU/ IPAS) and LAND experts started the assessment of customary administration and management of rangelands in the three pastoral areas of the Oromia Regional State. The study has been underway since late August 2014 and will continue through October 2014. The study assesses governance and operations of pastoral customary institutions and the rules used for rangeland management.

LAND’s newly recruited Pastoral Land Tenure Specialist and the Oromia Regional Field Coordinator in collaboration with the zone’s Rural Land Administration and Environmental Protection Offices collected basic data for profiling grazing unit management. These data will supplement the IPAS field assessment and provide input for the development of pastoral land use rights legislation.

Haramaya University completed a draft proposal for establishing the Ethiopian Pastoralist Information Management System (EPIMS). The proposal was circulated for comments to LAND and PRIME staff.

The purpose of the Ethiopia Land Administration to Nurture Development (LAND) program is to expand and extend two previously successful projects—Ethiopia Strengthening Land Tenure and Land Administration Program (ELTAP) implemented in 2005-2008 and Ethiopia Strengthening Land Administration Program (ELAP) implemented in 2008-2013 – financed by The United States Agency for International Development (USAID)/Ethiopia Mission and implemented by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and six regional states with technical assistance provided by Tetra Tech ARD. These projects helped strengthen rural land tenure security and women’s land use rights; encourage efficient land transactions; build capacity of federal and regional land administration agencies to improve service delivery and pilot cadastral surveying and certification methodologies to recognize and document rural land use rights.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

During the reporting period, LAND made considerable progress on all project components.

On Component 1 (Improve legal and policy frameworks at national and local levels)

LAND, and its partner, Landesa, supported the creation of the National Taskforce on Women’s Land Rights, whose aim is to deliberate on women’s land rights issues in order to inform formulation and implementation of land policy and legislation in Ethiopia. It will identify customary, legal and regulatory constraints affecting women’s rights to access and use land and make recommendations to policy makers and legislators on how they could be addressed. As a voice for women’s inheritance and land rights, the Taskforce will review and comment on forthcoming laws and regulations and make recommendations to ensure that the laws are in place and implemented to promote the realization of women’s land rights. The Taskforce currently has 20 members including representatives from the Ministries of Agriculture, Justice, Women, Children and Youth Affairs; the Federal Supreme Court, Oromia Pastoral Development Commission, USAID/Ethiopia, UN/WOMEN, UK funded LIFT and USAID PRIME projects and civil society groups such as the Ethiopian Women Lawyers Association. Two important national workshops were organized in collaboration with Land Administration and Use Directorate, Ministry of Agriculture (LAUD/MOA), the first one being on regional experiences in expropriation, valuation, and compensation. The purpose of this workshop was to discuss the varying practices in the region states to value and compensate land taken for public purposes and make recommendations to develop policy frameworks to harmonize practices to ensure citizens impacted by the takings are fully compensated for the loss of use rights to their land. The second workshop dealt with review of the suggested amendment to the Rural Land Administration and Use Proclamation No. 456/2005, which provided for lively debate on how best to broaden and more effectively secure tenure rights for both the farming and pastoral communities. Drafting of the Somali Pastoral Land Administration and Use Regulation was completed.

On Component 2 (Strengthen capacity in national, regional, and local land administration and use planning)

The Ethiopian Mapping Agency’s (EMA) continuously operating reference station (CORS) at Gondar airport became operational after system reconfiguration and improving internet connectivity. Currently the EMA is receiving data from all four stations made operational with LAND assistance. LAND organized a graduation ceremony for the 20 CORS technology trainees. Trainers of trainees (ToT) who were trained by LAND in Tigray, Amhara, Oromia and SNNP regional states cascaded ToT trainings at the grass roots level to build capacity of an additional 1,146 staff during this quarter. University partners continued preparation of training materials on the federal and rural land laws of Amhara, Oromia, SNNP and Tigray regional states. First drafts were submitted by Haramaya and Mekelle Universities, respectively for Oromiya and Tigray.

On Component 3 (Strengthen capacity of Ethiopian universities to engage in policy analysis and research related to land tenure and train land administration and land use professionals)

LAND obtained USAID approval for six grants under its Competitive Grants Scheme for a total value of $669,554. The ETHIOLANDNET network has started operation. It is preparing its five-year strategic plan and to conduct a national conference on land issues to be held in July 2015.

Component 4 (Strengthen community land rights in pastoral and agro-pastoral areas to facilitate market linkages and economic growth)

LAND held a series of consultation with Oromia Regional Officials and other stakeholders on reaching a consensus and a common vision for the way forward to demarcate and certify grazing units in Borana and Guji zones. It was agreed that a new Oromia Pastoral Land Administration and Use regulation will be prepared with the technical and financial assistance of LAND and further discussions and consultation should be held on the demarcating, surveying and mapping of the physical boundaries of the grazing units to be registered and certified.

During the next quarter, LAND will support drafting of legislation to protect the land use rights of pastoral communities in Oromia Regional State. LAND secured agreement with Oromia officials to develop a legislative drafting committee to draft a regulation that will pave the way for LAND supported activities to demarcate boundaries of community grazing systems and strengthen community governance structures to work with regional officials to effectively manage rangeland resources. Additionally, LAND’s partner, Landesa, will provide gender trainings for the Ad hoc Federal Drafting Committees to amend Federal Proclamation No. 456/2005, the Oromia legislative drafting committee and the Ethiopian Women’s Land Rights Task Force.

The purpose of the Ethiopia Land Administration to Nurture Development (LAND) program is to expand and extend two previously successful projects—Ethiopia Strengthening Land Tenure and Land Administration Program (ELTAP) implemented in 2005-2008 and Ethiopia Strengthening Land Administration Program (ELAP) implemented in 2008-2013 – financed by The United States Agency for International Development (USAID)/Ethiopia Mission and implemented by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and six regional states with technical assistance provided by Tetra Tech ARD. These projects helped strengthen rural land tenure security and women’s land use rights; encourage efficient land transactions; build capacity of federal and regional land administration agencies to improve service delivery and pilot cadastral surveying and certification methodologies to recognize and document rural land use rights.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The revised LAND Project five-year work plan and Monitoring and Evaluation Plan were approved by the USAID/ Ethiopia Mission. Accordingly, the work plan for the remaining period of Fiscal Year 2014 was revised and submitted to USAID and approved.

The Institute of Land Administration of Bahir Dar University (ILA/BDU) submitted its inception report of the review of implementation of Amhara regional land administration and land use legislation that will be reviewed by a steering committee.

Agreement has been reached with ILA/BDU on the curriculum and a budget for summer courses leading to a Master of Science (M.Sc.) degree for 84 federal and regional land administration experts in two batches. The first intake will occur in June 2014. This will be firmed up by signing a subcontract with ILA/BDU.

Terms of reference (TOR) for delivering training on operation of the Continuously Operating Reference System (CORS) and for preparing a proposal for densification of the CORS infrastructure in the country in the short-, medium-, and long-term was prepared and agreed upon with the Ethiopian Mapping Agency (EMA) and the Ministry of Agriculture/Land Administration and Use Department (MoA/LAUD). The consultant will execute the assignment during FY 2014.

LAND partner, Michigan State University (MSU), has completed the fieldwork for assessing the market demand for land administration professionals and private surveyors, and review of university undergraduate and Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) land administration training curricula in January 2014. The report will be completed in April 2014, and a validation workshop will be conducted at the end of May 2014.

A meeting of key stakeholders was held on March 17, 2014, to discuss the concept note to establish the “Ethiopian Land Research and Development Network (ELARDEN).” The concept was endorsed and suggestions given on how to proceed with establishment of ELARDEN. A Memorandum of Association was drafted and agreed upon, and strategies for operationalizing the network and ensuring its sustainability prepared. This was followed with brainstorming on thematic areas for research. The proposal that ILA/BDU be the secretariat for ELARDEN was also endorsed. The LAND Grants Management Manual was approved. LAND will publish an Annual Program Statement (APS) soliciting concept papers for research grants on or about April 30, 2014.

Broad modalities for collaboration were agreed upon with the PRIME project in implementing Component 4 of LAND. A monthly meeting has been instituted to review joint activities of both projects and chart the way forward. An Oromia Pastoralist Advisory Committee (OPAC) on land administration and natural resources management was established at the regional level. OPAC is an informal forum to discuss issues and action plans, exchange information and come to a common understanding to facilitate and increase the effectiveness of LAND and PRIME interventions in Oromia regional state. The terms of reference for OPAC were agreed upon. Zonal OPACs will be formed in the Guji and Borana zones in May 2014 when the regional OPAC is visiting these zones.

An assessment of pastoralist rangeland management institutions and the rules and procedures they use in administering and managing their rangelands and natural resources will be made to inform drafting legislation to secure pastoral land rights in the Oromia regional states. A terms of reference was prepared for carrying out the assessment among the Borana, Guji, Kereyu, Itu, and Bale pastoralists and discussed with the Institute of Pastoral and Agro-pastoral Studies (IPAS) of Haramaya University, which will carry out the task within the next quarter.

The Land Administration and Land Use Planning Expert of LAND attended a workshop in Negele-Borana to validate the resource map and boundaries of grazing units (dhedas) prepared under PLI-II and PRIME projects. He observed that further consultation with the communities and using larger-scale satellite maps would be necessary to finalize the resource map and boundary maps.

The LAND project is working with PRIME and Haramaya University to develop the architecture for an Ethiopian Pastoralist Knowledge Management System (EPKMS). The system will be designed to support the eventual formalization of land rights across the spectrum of customary rangeland management institutions in Ethiopia. Haramaya University will serve as the repository for this knowledge management platform, and work with both the LAND and PRIME projects to standardize the collection, management, online access and use, and dissemination of the information among targeted user groups.

The purpose of the Ethiopia Land Administration to Nurture Development (LAND) program is to expand and extend two previously successful projects—Ethiopia Strengthening Land Tenure and Land Administration Program (ELTAP) implemented in 2005-2008 and Ethiopia Strengthening Land Administration Program (ELAP) implemented in 2008-2013 – financed by The United States Agency for International Development (USAID)/Ethiopia Mission and implemented by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and six regional states with technical assistance provided by Tetra Tech ARD. These projects helped strengthen rural land tenure security and women’s land use rights; encourage efficient land transactions; build capacity of federal and regional land administration agencies to improve service delivery and pilot cadastral surveying and certification methodologies to recognize and document rural land use rights.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

During the reporting period, LAND made considerable progress on most project components.

Under Component 1 (Improved legal and policy frameworks at national and local levels)

LAND supported a national experts workshop in March 2015 where draft amendments to the Federal Land Administration and Land Use (LALU) Proclamation No. 456/2005 were presented and discussed. The workshop participants recommended that the draft is reviewed by representatives of regional land administration bureaus and universities for feedback and comment. In response to this request, LAND organized a ten-day workshop in April 2015 in Adama where 20 experts from regional land administration and justice bureaus and from universities participated. Comments and technical inputs from the experts were incorporated into the draft amendments and used to produce explanatory notes that were submitted to senior management in the MOA for approval. The consultant hired to prepare a draft the Somali National State Region (NRS) Pastoral Lands Administration and Use Regulation and LAND’s Property Rights Lawyer presented the draft to land administration and justice bureau experts and several officials and regional parliamentarians at a workshop held in Jigjiga in April 2015. The Consultant improved the draft with the inputs obtained from the workshop. The regional rural development bureau conducted another workshop where members of communities and elders participated and the feedback was used to improve the draft regulations further. The draft was finalized in May 2015 and submitted to the regional bureau in June 2015.

Haramaya, Debub and Mekelle Universities submitted first drafts of land law training manuals they were commissioned to prepare by LAND for their respective regional states on which LAND technical specialists gave their comments. Bahir Dar University has not yet submitted its draft. The first draft report on the assessment of the implementation of rural land laws in the Amhara NRS by Bahir Dar University was received which is being reviewed by LAND’s technical specialists.

Under Component 2 (Strengthened capacity in national, regional, and local land administration and use planning)

On May 6, 2015, LAND experts presented the conclusions of three thematic papers to senior management of the Ministry of Agriculture, MOA chaired by His Excellency Ato Tefera Derbew. The message focused on the adverse consequences of lack of an overarching national land use policy and the urgent need for its formulation. The presentations were favorably received and H.E. the Minister instructed the Director of the Land Administration and Use Directorate (LAUD) to prepare a policy brief and a decision memo on a recommendation for the next steps. Accordingly, LAND provided assistance to LAUD in the preparation of a 10-page policy brief.

The consultant hired to provide technical assistance to EMA prepared a needs assessment report and started drafting a project proposal that enable EMA to establish full coverage of the geodetic network in the country with CORS.

Under Component 3 (Strengthened capacity of Ethiopian universities to engage in policy analysis and research related to land tenure and train land administration and land use professionals)

The M.Sc. training program for government land administration staff is progressing as planned. Both batches (2014/2015 and 2015/2016 entry) of 42 trainees each are currently enrolled at ILA/BDU since June 2015. A LAND team will visit Bahir Dar University in July to monitor the academic activities and assess the performance of the Secretariat of ETHIOLANDNET (ILA/BDU).

LAND received the Michigan State University (MSU) revised draft research report on demand for land administration professionals. A validation workshop was held in 23-24 June 2015 with the participation of key stakeholders. The MSU research team presented the findings of the study with sufficient details and useful comments and information were received that would enrich the final report. LAND expects the MSU team to formally submit the final report in the next quarter.

Regarding the Competitive Research Grant Program, six grantees that received approval from both Tetra Tech ARD and USAID/Ethiopia Mission were given orientation on the terms and conditions of the Grant Agreement with a primary focus on the “Mandatory Standard Provisions (MSP) and Required as Applicable Standard Provisions (RAASPS). All invited representatives attended the workshop with active participation and contribution. Subsequently, LAND released funds to the grantees according to the USAID procedures of grant administration.

Under Component 4 (Strengthened community land rights in pastoral and agro-pastoral areas to facilitate market linkages and economic growth)

LAND completed an inventory of lands allocated for cropping and grazing enclosures (kalos) in the Borana zone, which included data on the holdings that are above one hectare in 10 woredas of the Borana zone. Similar data collection activity is underway in five pastoral woredas of the Guji zone and will be completed in the next quarter. LAND’s technical team reviewed the report submitted by Haramaya University entitled “Customary Land Administration and Natural Resource Management in the Pastoral Areas of the Oromia Regional State” and sent its comments and suggestions for substantial improvements to the University. The report contains useful information on the three pastoral groups located in East Shewa, West Hararghe, and Bale zones. It documents the customary practices and institutions used to administer and manage the rangelands and other natural resources.Work on demarcation and mapping for registration and certification of pastoral lands was halted because an agreement could not be reached with the Oromia NRS on the unit of land to be registered. LAND is preparing a position paper on this issue for discussion with the Oromia Regional Pastoral Advisory Committee. This paper will be presented at the validation workshop of the IPAS/HU study findings.

Consultation Meetings were held from April 30 – May 1, 2015, with the Afar NRS officials and stakeholders. The objective was to establish a common understanding on the process of certifying pastoral land use rights in the region. The meeting that was held in the Afar NRS capital (Semera) was jointly initiated by the Afar government, the Land Administration and Use Directorate (LAUD) of the Ministry of Agriculture (MOA), and the LAND Project. The attendance was impressive and included the cabinet members of the regional state, including the President, Vice President, Regional Bureau heads and deputy heads, staff members and officials from the federal MOA, a member of the Afar Pastoralists Council, LAND project leaders and experts, and a Senior Policy Advisor of the USAID/Ethiopia Mission. Reactions from the participants indicated that the discussions were indeed valuable and provided new insights on issues of pastoral land use rights in the region. The Afar NRS government selected Amibara and Chifra woredas for piloting pastoral land certification. A LAND technical team visited both sites in June 2015 to discuss with woreda officials and community elders the planned interventions that would commence with a rapid situation appraisal in the next quarter. The responses observed from participants of the two woredas were overwhelmingly positive.

The purpose of the Ethiopia Land Administration to Nurture Development (LAND) program is to expand and extend two previously successful projects—Ethiopia Strengthening Land Tenure and Land Administration Program (ELTAP) implemented in 2005-2008 and Ethiopia Strengthening Land Administration Program (ELAP) implemented in 2008-2013 – financed by The United States Agency for International Development (USAID)/Ethiopia Mission and implemented by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and six regional states with technical assistance provided by Tetra Tech ARD. These projects helped strengthen rural land tenure security and women’s land use rights; encourage efficient land transactions; build capacity of federal and regional land administration agencies to improve service delivery and pilot cadastral surveying and certification methodologies to recognize and document rural land use rights.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

During the reporting period, LAND continued to make significant progress on most of the project components.

Under Component 1 (Improved legal and policy frameworks at national and local levels)

Hawassa University submitted the draft of the SNNP land law implementation assessment which is currently being reviewed by the LAND Team. Mekelle University commenced the assessment for Tigray NRS during the reporting quarter. LAND subcontractor “The Amhara Design and Supervision Works Enterprise” submitted draft guidelines for pastoral communal land expropriation, valuation and compensation in Afar NRS. The draft is being reviewed by the LAND technical team. The draft amendments to Federal Proclamation No. 456/2005 were further reviewed in close consultation with relevant stakeholders in the Amhara, Oromia and SNNP NRS.

LAND successfully conducted a national workshop to inform stakeholders on the importance of an overarching and comprehensive national land utilization policy to guide government land use planning. The workshop was conducted from 20-21 October 2015 at Adama town. The workshop served to provide participants with a better understanding of the need for a national land utilization policy and obtain their support to coordinate their efforts with assistance from LAND to prepare the draft policy.

Under Component 2 (Strengthened capacity in national, regional, and local land administration and use planning)

The expert local consultant contracted by LAND provided technical assistance to the Ethiopian Mapping Agency (EMA) to resolve telecommunication and power supply issues that were hampering the proper functioning of the four EMA Continuously Operating Reference Station (CORS) and to make the CORS fully functional. The consultant also completed the design of CORS network to provide Real Time Kinematic (RTK) and On-line Positioning User (OPU) services. Preparation of the final proposal on densification and collaborative arrangement of stakeholders that will manage the CORS stations is also in its final stage.LAND continued its efforts to build

LAND continued its efforts to build capacity of federal and regional land administration and land use (LALU) professionals in land use planning and GIS and remote sensing. The training delivered by LAND is designed to support the efforts of Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources (MOANR) to produce national and regional master land use plans and local level land use plans as envisioned in the Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP) for Ethiopia. During the reporting period, a total of 82 federal and regional staff were trained to then cascade training down to land administration officials at staff at the woreda level to help ensure the sustainability of USAID/Ethiopia’s capacity building investments.The universities of Bahir Dar, Haramaya, Hawassa and Mekelle delivered the final versions of the training manuals commissioned by LAND that will be used to build

The universities of Bahir Dar, Haramaya, Hawassa and Mekelle delivered the final versions of the training manuals commissioned by LAND that will be used to build capacity of local land administration officials to implement applicable Land Administration and Land Use (LALU) legislation to improve service delivery and strengthen land rights of rural Ethiopians. LAND then began to support cascaded trainings to local land administration officials using the manuals.

Under Component 3 (Strengthened capacity of Ethiopian universities to engage in policy analysis and research related to land tenure and train land administration and land use professionals)

The first batch of (41) students enrolled in the Institute of Land Administration of Bahir Dar University’s (ILA/BDU) M.Sc. program embarked on thesis research work in their respective regions and agencies. The second group of 41 students has also completed their first session at the ILA/BDU. The students were tasked to complete take home assignments that they will complete in parallel with performing their duties in their respective land administration bureaus. The take home assignments are to be completed and submitted to ILA/BDU before the start of the next summer session in June 2016.

The grantees selected under the LAND’s competitive grant scheme made satisfactory progress to towards completing field research. LAND has closely monitored performance in the field and confirmed grantees are performing research in accordance with the terms of their respective grant agreements. It is expected the grantees will submit the first draft of the findings of their research to LAND in the coming quarter for review and comment. The reports will then be finalized, presented and disseminated through the Ethiopian Land Research and Development Network (ETHIOLANDNET) research forum to be held in the third or fourth quarter of FY 2016.

LAND has been instrumental in the establishment of the ETHIOLANDNET) hosted by Bahir Dar University. LAND is currently supporting the Network to establish a national repository and searchable website at ILA/BDU that will enable the systematic collection, storage, and management of spatial data, statistical data as well as research papers and books on a range of topics related to land administration and international best practices. , Upon the request of ILA/BDU, LAND is facilitating a competitive procurement process to procure a server to make the repository and website fully functional. It is expected the server will be installed, configured and made fully functional in the next quarter. Additionally, the ETHIOLANDNET strategic plan for 2016-2021 is being developed and will be finalized in the next quarter.

Under Component 4 (Strengthened community land rights in pastoral and agro-pastoral areas to facilitate market linkages and economic growth)

LAND organized consultation meetings in the pastoral and agro-pastoral woredas in Borana and Guji zones of the Oromia NRS to discuss the unit of pastoral landholding registration and certification. Representatives of the pastoral communities requested these units to be the dheedas while participants from the local government offices favored boundaries that align with administrative boundaries of kebeles.

The LAND technical team conducted a rapid assessment of the customary land administration and natural resource management rules, norms and practices in Chifra woreda of the Afar NRS to better understand how customary institutions manage the community’s rangelands and natural resources.

LAND promoted the rights of women to access and use land by engaging the Women’s National Land Rights Taskforce (established with support from LAND) to hold stakeholder consultations and produce recommendations to help strengthen protections provided to women by draft amendments to Federal Proclamation |No. 456/2005. Recommendations identified the need to sensitize kebele level land administration committees to enable women to exercise their rights to use land and to ensure fair representation of women in each committee. The Taskforce also agreed to work on raising the awareness of members of the Women and Children’s Affairs Standing Committees of the Parliament before the draft amendments to the Proclamation are presented to the Council of Ministers.

The LAND Gender Specialist gathered information from different community members of Chifra woreda to assess the customary organizational structure, the representation of women within the structure, accessibility of the customary system for women and vulnerable groups and the gender-sensitivity of the customary laws. The assessment includes the perception of women, men and the community at large about women’s land rights.

The purpose of the Ethiopia Land Administration to Nurture Development (LAND) program is to expand and extend two previously successful projects—Ethiopia Strengthening Land Tenure and Land Administration Program (ELTAP) implemented in 2005-2008 and Ethiopia Strengthening Land Administration Program (ELAP) implemented in 2008-2013 – financed by The United States Agency for International Development (USAID)/Ethiopia Mission and implemented by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and six regional states with technical assistance provided by Tetra Tech ARD. These projects helped strengthen rural land tenure security and women’s land use rights; encourage efficient land transactions; build capacity of federal and regional land administration agencies to improve service delivery and pilot cadastral surveying and certification methodologies to recognize and document rural land use rights.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

During the reporting period, LAND continued to make significant progress across the project components.

Under Component 1 (Improved legal and policy frameworks at national and local levels)

Bahir Dar University and Hawassa Universities submitted the final version of their assessments for Amhara and SNNP National Regional States (NRSs), respectively. They are making preparations to conduct validation workshops on their findings in the following quarter. Mekelle University is in the process of conducting the assessment for Tigray NRS.

LAND subcontractor “The Amhara Design and Supervision Works Enterprise” delivered the first draft and assessment report of the guidelines for pastoral communal land expropriation, valuation and compensation in Afar NRS. It is now revising the draft incorporating the comments made by LAND experts.

The Committee tasked with drafting the Oromia Pastoral Land Use Rights Regulation prepared a zero draft and submitted it to the Oromia Rural Lands and Environmental Protection Bureau (OBRLEP) for review. Consultations with members of the community in pastoral areas will be held after comments from OBERLEP are incorporated into a revised draft of the Regulation. The Somali NRS draft pastoral land administration and use regulation was translated into the Somali language and pending review by the land authority.

After a series of regional consultations, amendments to the Federal Land Administration and Use Proclamation No. 456/2005 were finalized and submitted to senior management of the Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources (MoANR).

A high-level ministerial committee under the Prime Minister’s Office is steering and coordinating development of an overarching and comprehensive national land utilization policy. A national task force with membership of the relevant ministries and government agencies was established to provide technical guidance and review during the preparation. LAND will provide financial and technical assistance to this effort.

Under Component 2 (Strengthened capacity in national, regional, and local land administration and use planning)

LAND has engaged an Ethiopian consultant to provide the EMA with technical assistance to rehabilitate and make fully operational its Continuously Operating Reference Station (CORS). The consultant assisted the EMA to resolve telecommunication and power supply issues that hampered the proper functioning of the CORS stations and trained 16 EMA and four Information Network Security Agency (INSA) staff in installing and operating CORS. The consultant is now preparing a project proposal for the development of the geodetic network of the country based on CORS Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) in the short, medium and long-term.

LAND continued its efforts to build capacity of federal and regional land administration and land use (LALU) professionals in land use planning and GIS and remote sensing. The training delivered by LAND is designed to support the efforts of the federal and regional governments to produce national, regional and local master land use plans as envisioned in the nation’s Second Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP II). During the reporting period, federal and regional trainers who successfully completed LAND’s Training of Trainers (TOT) program delivered training to a total of 1,441 zonal and woreda staff and 636 development agents from four regions (Amhara, Oromia and SNNPR). The training sessions lasted between 5-10 days to build capacity in participatory land use planning, GIS and remote sensing.

Under Component 3 (Strengthened capacity of Ethiopian universities to engage in policy analysis and research related to land tenure and train land administration and land use professionals)

The first batch of (41) students enrolled in the Institute of Land Administration of Bahir Dar University’s (ILA/BDU) in the summer M.Sc. program have commenced their thesis research work in their respective regions. They are expected to graduate in October 2016. The second group of 41 students have completed their first session at the ILA/BDU in August 2015 and have taken home assignments that they will complete before their second and final summer session in June-August 2016. The grantees selected under the LAND’s competitive grant scheme made satisfactory progress towards completing field research. On the spot monitoring, visits were conducted by LAND experts. The visits along with desk reviews have confirmed that data collection activities were progressing very well but not yet completed. Grant closeout procedures were discussed with grantees at meetings held with the leadership and Principal Investigators of each grant.

At its meeting of February 4, 2016, at LAND’s Office in Addis Ababa, the Executive Committee of ETHIOLANDNET adopted the network’s five-year strategic plan (2016-2020) submitted by the Secretariat. The Committee also discussed the national conference being organized on land research which is planned to take place in September/October 2016. A working group was formed to follow up on the preparations leading to the conference which include identifying thematic areas, selecting and inviting paper presenters and participants, and identifying funding sources.

Under Component 4 (Strengthened community land rights in pastoral and agro-pastoral areas to facilitate market linkages and economic growth)

Following the decision made by the Oromia Rural Land Administration and Environmental Protection (OBRLEP) Bureau of the Oromia NRS to use reera as a unit of pastoral landholding registration and certification, LAND team comprising the DCOP, the pastoral land tenure and land administration specialists travelled to Borana to clarify conflicting definition of the term reera in the government documents and administrative structures, on the one hand, and in project reports, maps, and community descriptions, on the other.

The team spoke with all relevant actors including PRIME staff, customary institutions leaders, and local administration officials in the area. The team learned that the reera as understood by communities for decades covers a larger area than the one that is currently used by local administration. While discussing the unit of pastoral landholding registration and certification, the zone administration also showed interest and accepted LAND’s previous proposal to pilot the registration and certification of communal land at the dheeda level and proposed piloting of three dheedas (Golbo, Malbe and Dirre). LAND team will present the findings of its investigations and the position of the zone administrator during further discussions with the OBRLEP and request it to consider the pastoral communities’ demand to secure the landholding certificate at dheeda level.

The LAND technical team conducted a rapid assessment of the customary land administration and natural resource management rules, norms and practices in Amibara woreda of the Afar NRS during the reporting period to better understand how customary institutions manage the community’s rangelands and natural resources.

The action plan and processes and procedures that LAND will follow in adjudication, surveying, demarcation, registration and certification of pastoral landholdings in the Afar NRS were presented to experts and officials of the region, MoANR and other stakeholders at the consultative meeting held in Awash from February 22-23, 2016. A summary of LAND team’s findings on Chifra and Amibara woredas was also presented at the same event.LAND’s Gender Specialist assisted the National Women’s Land Rights Taskforce (WLRT) in establishing regional Women Land Rights Taskforces in Oromia, Amhara, Tigray and South Nations, Nationalities and Peoples National Regional States.

LAND’s Gender Specialist assisted the National Women’s Land Rights Taskforce (WLRT) in establishing regional Women Land Rights Taskforces in Oromia, Amhara, Tigray and South Nations, Nationalities and Peoples National Regional States.

The purpose of the Ethiopia Land Administration to Nurture Development (LAND) program is to expand and extend two previously successful projects—Ethiopia Strengthening Land Tenure and Land Administration Program (ELTAP) implemented in 2005-2008 and Ethiopia Strengthening Land Administration Program (ELAP) implemented in 2008-2013 – financed by The United State Agency for International Development (USAID)/Ethiopia Mission and implemented by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and six regional states with technical assistance provided by Tetra Tech ARD. These projects helped strengthen rural land tenure security and women’s land use rights; encourage efficient land transactions; build the capacity of federal and regional land administration agencies to improve service delivery and pilot cadastral surveying and certification methodologies to recognize and document rural land use rights.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The Institute of Land Administration of Bahir Dar University and Hawassa University finalized the inception reports and study tools for assessing implementation of the existing rural land laws of Amhara and SNNP regions.

To advance implementation of the recommendations contained in LAND’s Gender Assessment and Action Plan (GAAP), preparatory work was initiated to: (i) support raising awareness and training on gender issues in land laws and their implementation in SNNPR and Tigray regional states that will be conducted early in the next quarter; and (ii) establish a national Women’s Land Rights Taskforce for the purpose of advocating legislative improvements and implementation of existing legislative provisions to enhance and protect women’s land use rights.

LAND and the Ministry of Agriculture’s Land Administration and Use Directorate (MoA/LAUD) developed terms of reference to organize a workshop on the regional practices and the problems relating to valuation and compensation.

Drafts of five papers to be presented at the national workshop on land use policy were received and are being reviewed.

A training and orientation workshop was organized for 39 newly posted woreda and zonal officials from Afar regional state to inform them of the land use rights of pastoralists under the regional pastoral land laws and to prepare them for the impending LAND’s work in the region.

A two-day workshop on the pastoral land administration and use proclamation of Somali regional state was conducted for 19 woreda officials and land administration experts to create awareness on the pastoral land rights recognized under the region’s pastoral land administration proclamation.

The participatory local level land use planning manual previously produced by the MoA was revised by a consultant commissioned by LAND and the revision was discussed by federal and regional before finalization.

LAND technical staff provided two rounds of comments on the report produced by Michigan State University (MSU) on the market demand survey for LALU professionals and review of the curricula for training LALU professionals and technicians.

A local consultant was commissioned to provide capacity building training for EMA’s staff and prepare proposals for the short, medium and long-term development of the CORS system for the country. The consultant will conduct a needs assessment before the training and inspect the existing CORS stations.

LAND arranged for the admission of 42 federal and land administration staff from 9 regions and two city administrations to a summer M.Sc. training program by the Institute of Land Administration of Bahir Dar University.

The memorandum of association to establish the Ethiopian Land Research and Development Network (ETHIOLANDNET) was drafted and its concept note revised. The invitation to submit concept notes on 8 thematic areas of research on land issues to be financed under the LAND Grants Scheme was advertised in the papers. Thirty-two concept papers were received and 14 of them submitted by 12 institutions were short-listed to advance to the next cycle of submitting a detailed full technical and financial proposal.

LAND opened a field office in Yabello town, Borana Zone of Oromia Region. The Borana Zonal Oromia Pastoral Advisory Committee was established. It was not possible to establish the one for the Guji Zone due to security problems that arose from the conflict between the Guji and Borana ethnic groups.

LAND has teamed with the Institute of Pastoral and Agropastoral Studies of Haramaya University to assess the customary organization and management of pastoral communities in managing rangeland resources in Oromia regional state. The assessment team has finished its literature review and is preparing its inception report, including the field survey tools for focus group discussion and key informant interviews for the field work that will be started in August 2014.

Profiling of basic data important for land certification and registration was collected in Gomole, Malbe and Dire Dhedas in Borana zone. The profiling includes information on investment, mining, roads infrastructures, parks, ranches, NGOs operating in the area, government owned Productive Safety Net Project (PSNP) and Pastoral Community Development Project (PCDP), irrigation initiatives and livestock and human population data was conducted. In addition, zonal level livestock and population data and government’s water development plans for 2014/2015 and irrigation plans/designs were collected.

LAND conducted a three-day training on a result-based monitoring and evaluation for 19 staffs of the Ministry of Agriculture and regional LALU agencies to equip them with skills that enable them use M&E systems to provide continuous feedback on the extent, to which development programs and projects implemented by their organizations/agencies, are achieving their goals, identify potential problems at an early stage and propose possible solutions and improvements as needed.

PREPARING FOR PEACE

The government of Colombia (GOC) and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) reached a major milestone in the peace negotiation process by signing the bilateral ceasefire on June 23, 2016. Timochenko, leader of the FARC, declared the armed conflict over and vowed that the FARC would never again take up arms against the state. Included in the ceasefire agreement is the FARC’s demobilization plan—with specific geographic areas identified in which former guerrillas will temporarily live and surrender their weapons.

While this gives reason to rejoice, and Colombians can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel, the signature of the final peace accords remains pending. President Santos stepped out on a limb once again, declaring July 20 the new date for the signing of the peace accords—marking the second time he has provided a specific date for the signature. Once the peace deal is signed, the GOC must move quickly and efficiently to ensure its sustainability, particularly in the regions hit the hardest by the conflict. To help the government in the momentous task of creating a constructive post-conflict Colombia, USAID’s Land and Rural Development Program (LRDP) will continue providing technical assistance to promote peace, secure property rights, and ensure rural development in the regions.

POSITIONING THE REGIONS FOR PEACE

As reported last quarter, we supported the inclusion of strategic issues related to peace, rural development, and land—with a gender and ethnic focus—in 57 municipal and 6 departmental development plans. Ensuring the inclusion of these areas in development plans is required for regional governments to access GOC funds and to promote the implementation of key activities needed to prepare the regions for post-conflict. Next quarter, we will transition our support from aiding in the creation of development plans to providing technical assistance in their implementation. Our effective engagement of regional governments has established LRDP as an “honest broker” and an important stakeholder in promoting rural development.

ENGAGING NEW AGENCIES

The end of the quarter marked important advances in our engagement with new GOC agencies. Mirroring our approach to establishing trust and confidence with regional-level authorities, we did the same at the national level, meeting separately with the heads of the National Land Agency (known by its Spanish acronym, ANT), the Rural Development Agency, and the Agency for Renewal of the Territories.

Based on our knowledge and experience of rural development and land reform challenges facing Colombia at the national and regional levels, we have much to offer these agencies. All will be looking for quick wins as they begin to operate. We have initial buy-in from the ANT regarding our massive formalization pilot in Ovejas (Sucre), which is essential for the pilot’s success and for the ANT’s adoption of new mechanisms and methodologies to continue promoting massive formalization in the future. Our first working meeting with the agency allowed us to establish relationships at the technical level—everyone is clear on their points of contact within the new agency, and our staff is already engaging their respective collegial counterparts.

Like the other new agencies, the Agency for Renewal of the Territories is in its nascent stages. Its director is hard at work, although she is awaiting the announcement of her official appointment. The agency will work in the municipalities hardest hit by conflict, helping build confidence and trust between rural Colombia and the state. Discussions with the Rural Development Agency are incipient, and our first technical meeting with the agency will take place early next quarter.

We expect to take on an important coordination role among these three agencies. They are so closely linked in objectives and results that they must achieve a level of coordination unprecedented among GOC institutions. Historically, the tendency among GOC institutions is to go their separate ways, implementing their mandates in a vacuum, which significantly reduces efficiencies and fosters duplication of efforts and, ultimately, confusion among the final beneficiary—the campesino. We will spearhead efforts to promote synergies among these agencies and to maximize the impact that each one can have in a post-conflict scenario.

MAKING A DIFFERENCE: ACHIEVEMENTS

Key achievements from this quarter include the following:
“This was a very careful and well-done exercise—the variables, the scenarios were very well selected. I congratulate [LRDP and the Mission]; this is a contribution where international aid can be seen.”

• Improving access to information. We digitalized over 10,000 restitution case files, which are now available via a searchable online platform, improving the quality and speed of the restitution process.
• Recalculating the demand for restitution services. For a long time, the GOC and the international donor community worked under the assumption that 360,000 families require restitution services—a figure strongly debated by national and regional media. To clarify the validity of this estimate, and at the request of the Land Restitution Unit (LRU), we conducted a statistical analysis to determine the real demand for restitution services amongColombian citizens. Our analysis revealed that only 160,000 individuals require restitution—lessthan half of the country’s original estimate. This analysis also involved the creation of a statistical model and methodology that the GOC can use in the future. It serves as an important input to facilitate strategic planning by the LRU during its final five years of operation. Ricardo Sabogal, the LRU’s director, estimates that by 2021 (the last year for the LRU as established by theVictim’s Law) the LRU will have only a few municipalities in need of restitution support.Perhaps they will represent the most complex cases, but they will be limited.
• Preparing for the Land Fund. The availability of land parcels for the Land Fund is an important part of the post-conflict phase, as it will ensure that rural citizens get their hands on the land they need.We completed legal studies of 438 parcels (representing 39,164 hectares) of public lands that can potentially feed this new fund. Of those, 236 parcels are available for immediate transfer (the others require additional field work before they are viable for transfer). This is important because these parcels will likely be the first inputs for the Land Fund when it is formally established after the signing of the peace accords. The ANT has requested additional support from LRDP with regard to preparing the administrative resolutions—a necessary procedural step—for these 236 parcels, which we will do next quarter.
• Activity Monitoring and Evaluation Plan (AMEP). USAID approved a new revision of LRDP’s AMEP.The new version combines both quantitative and qualitative indicators, enabling us to better tell our story and to improve our ability to measure progress toward targets. We will begin reporting on these revised indicators next quarter.

TRANSITION: PROJECT LEADERSHIP

This quarter, we welcomed a new Chief of Party, Anna Knox, and a new Deputy Chief of Party–Administration/Finance, Vanessa Martinez, and we bid farewell to our Deputy Chief of Party–Technical, Alejandro Tellez. Although the level of transition in leadership positions is significant, we have mechanisms and plans in place to ensure that the transition occurs smoothly and efficiently. For example, our new COP, Anna Knox, and outgoing COP, Christian Kolar, have a four-week overlap period following Ms. Knox’s two-month consulting assignment with LRDP. Vanessa Martinez, as our former Operations Manager, brings institutional memory and sound experience to the DCOPAdministration/Finance position, allowing for a smooth transition and for continued efficient operations of our administrative and financial areas. While we finalize selection of a new DCOP–Technical, LauraViñoly will serve in an acting capacity, bringing more than 20 years of international development implementation experience to ensure that technical activities are strategic and remain on schedule.

Colombia finds itself at a critical crossroads. On September 26, 2016, before an audience including the United Nations Secretary-General, U.S. Secretary of State, and several Latin American presidents, all wearing white to commemorate this historic day, President Juan Manuel Santos and his former enemy and leader of the Armed Revolutionary Forces of Colombia (FARC), Rodrigo Londoño (better known as “Timochenko”) signed the peace accords. In a symbolic action to demonstrate unity and the beginning of the reconciliation process, President Santos pinned the peace dove (which he has worn every day during his current administration as a symbol of his commitment to ending the 52-year war) on Timochenko’s lapel. Words of peace and apology marked the occasion, along with an impressive flyover by Colombian air force jets trailing the colors of the Colombia flag up above. Traditionally, the sound of jets overhead used to mean potential bombing for the FARC—but on September 26, the flyover served as a gesture of peace and national unity.

Six days later, on October 2, much to the shock of many Colombians and the world, Colombian citizens voted against the peace accords by the slightest of margins. According to the Washington Office on Latin America, 49.78% voted in favor of the accords and 50.21% voted against; in actual numbers, this translates into a margin of a mere 53,894 votes. A total of 13,066,047 people voted, representing approximately 37.43% of eligible voters.

President Santos has declared on more than one occasion that there is no plan B. He has called the negotiators back to the table to determine next steps. This is the context in which the Land and Rural Development Program’s (LRDP) year 3 comes to a close and year 4 begins.

KEY ADVANCES

Since the beginning of the project implementation, USAID/Colombia and the program itself have made a commitment to continue pressing land reform and rural development initiatives forward regardless of the status of the peace accords. Today, more than ever, LRDP must continue to build on its strong foundation and support the government of Colombia (GOC) and the people of Colombia to press ahead.

During the year, we established ourselves as an “honest broker” by engaging new mayors and governors before and after they took office in January 2016. Building relationships based on trust, confidence, and transparency, we actively engaged mayors in 57 municipalities and governors in six departments to help them construct their municipal and departmental development plans—mandatory four-year plans that establish goals for growth and improvement, with corresponding budget allocations. Our efforts served to ensure that regional-level planning incorporated essential elements required for land reform and rural development, as well as the protection of vulnerable groups, such as women and ethnic minorities. In addition, through our knowledge of national-level entities and their initiatives, we helped ensure that these plans were consistent with national objectives (e.g., the Development Programs with a Regional Focus instrument to mobilize resources for rural development programs and garnering support for massive formalization pilot activities).

Complementing this work at the regional level, we successfully engaged three newly established national entities from the moment of their inception. Established via presidential decree in December 2015, the National Land Agency, the Rural Development Agency, and the Agency for Territorial Renovation began operating on a minimal basis during the fiscal year. Two of these entities (the National Land Agency and the Rural Development Agency) replace much of the work previously under the purview of the Colombian Institute for Rural Development (INCODER), which is now under liquidation and no longer operating. We quickly developed technical working relationships with each entity, demonstrating that the project is able to help these new institutions achieve quick wins. For example, directors and subdirectors from all three institutions as well as the Land Restitution Unit (LRU) traveled with us to the Ovejas municipality in Sucre, where we are working alongside government counterparts to implement a massive formalization pilot. The visit helped the agencies’ leadership understand current progress and challenges in the municipalities hardest hit by the armed conflict and was instrumental in demonstrating the relevance of the program’s integrated, territory-focused development approach to the agencies’ future success in overcoming entrenched rural neglect. As we enter year 4, we will continue to promote coordination between these agencies and will facilitate their link to important regional actors.

Another important effort throughout the year was the facilitation of public-private partnerships (PPPs), which are understood as collaborative working relationships in the agricultural sector that involve entities from both the public and private sectors and where all parties play an equal role in determining the partnership’s goals, structure, and administration, as well as individual roles and responsibilities. During the year, we facilitated the launch of five new PPPs with a cumulative value of US$20.8 million in the coffee, cacao, honey, and dairy sectors in the departments of Tolima, Bolívar, Sucre, Cesar, and Meta. The program’s approach is unique in that it does not directly inject resources into the partnership. Rather, we position the local government as the convener and a critical investor in the partnership while also strengthening essential knowledge and skills of producer associations and public partners, thereby paving the way for sustainable rural enterprise. These new partnerships, which include restituted families and families who will benefit from land formalization initiatives in prioritized regions, serve as an engine for rural development and economic growth.

Throughout the year, we also continued to engage GOC entities in developing information systems aimed at better managing land data, facilitating the restitution process, and better planning and tracking their progress. We completed seven systems for the LRU, Agustin Codazzi Geographic Institute (IGAC), Superintendence of Notary and Registry (SNR), and Cesar’s Secretariat of Agriculture, which are now being used by their respective entities and are contributing to more efficient workflows. In particular, the system that we developed for IGAC, which houses newly digitalized cadastral files, has resulted in a 73% reduction in time needed to deliver this information when requested during the restitution process; and the system that we developed for the SNR, which provides authorized public entities with easy and free access to Certificates of Delivery and Unencumbered Property (a certificate often required in the restitution process), has resulted in a 99% reduction in processing time.

We also produced 12 episodes for a radio drama series. Written and performed by 59 female victims of the armed conflict, these programs sought to increase awareness about women’s rights to land and provide information on how GOC institutions can support them in claiming these rights. The episodes aired on 36 radio stations and reached listeners in 96 municipalities.

This year, we also spearheaded coordination initiatives among USAID implementing partners. In Montes de María, for example, a representative from USAID’s Program Office participated in the coordination session, which allowed the agency to see firsthand how the projects are sharing information and coordinating their efforts to yield greater impact. Throughout the year, LRDP collaborated with such programs as Colombia Responde (both CELI Central and CELI North-South), Rural Finance, and Access to Justice.

In addition, revising the Activity Monitoring and Evaluation Plan (AMEP) proved to be an intensive and collaborative initiative throughout the year. Measuring the outcomes of institutional capacity strengthening is fraught with challenges, including the time lag between learning and results, the ability to assign direct attribution, and ever-changing institutions and leaders. For that reason, we continued to coordinate with USAID to identify indicators that better tell our story and to improve the balance between quantitative and qualitative results. USAID approved a revised AMEP, which includes indicators that assess both direct and indirect outcomes together with impacts on women and ethnic minorities. While the AMEP is an important tool for the program and USAID to communicate progress and impact, this must be combined with high-quality communications materials that make the link between the program’s work, institutional strengthening, and tangible impacts on rural communities.