Our work Projects Support for community land and forest tenure security by village Land Commissions in Mali

Support for community land and forest tenure security by village Land Commissions in Mali

The National Coordinating Body of Peasant Organizations in Mali (CNOP) is building on the achievements and lessons of the Tenure Facility pilot project to upscale the role of local Land Commissions in securing land tenure rights and resolving conflict over land and resources.

Completed

From: 01/01/2019

To: 31/03/2023

Budget: $1,500,000

Proponents: National Coordinating Body of Peasant Organizations in Mali (CNOP) and HELVETAS Swiss Intercooperation

Partners: HELVETAS Swiss Intercooperation
ONG TONUS
ONG SAHEL ECO
RÉSEAU RÉUSSIR LE DÉCENTRALISATION AU MALI (RLD)
SECRETARIAT EXECUTIF DE LA LOI D’ORIENTATION AGRICOLE (SP/LOA)
ACTE SEPT
CONVERGENCE MALIENNE CONTRE LES ACCARPEMENT DES TERRES (CMAT/UACDDDD)

Associates: Cultural Association Act Sept
Malian Group Against Land Grabbing

Stakeholders: Grassroots communities and their organizations, including family farmers and other vulnerable groups such as youth, women, migrants, and herders
National ministries and technical services responsible for agriculture, land issues, decentralization, and the environment
High Council of Communities
CNOP

The initiative will contribute to achieving the 2015 Accord for Peace and Reconciliation by addressing land conflict, a root cause of the armed conflict. It will also support the implementation Mali’s Agricultural Land Law (LFA), which was enacted in 2017. The LFA recognizes the customary land rights of communities and family farmers, which can be secured through local Land Commissions.

Working with HELVETAS Swiss Intercooperation, CNOP will consolidate the capacity and effectiveness of the 17 local Land Commissions established in the pilot, establish and support the operations of 100 more land commissions in three regions, and encourage the inclusion and participation of women and vulnerable groups in land governance. The initiative aims to encourage sustainable management of natural resources by promoting the agro-ecological farming. This innovative approach promotes environmental protection, climate change mitigation, social inclusion, and peaceful collaboration and co-existence.

To read a brief overview of Mali, click here.

For a timeline of land and forest rights in Mali, click here.

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"Mali's new Agricultural Land Law says 15% of lands must be allocated to women and young people. We are building the capacity of land commissions to encourage and support their participation, as well as the inclusion and participation of immigrant farmers, pastoralists, and nomads."

- Ibrahima Coulibaly, CNOP President

Project Overview

Goal

To secure community agricultural land for sustainable, equitable, and peaceful land management.

Objectives

Strengthen village and community Land Commissions and support the creation of new ones.
Train community leaders and Land Commissions on land management provisions and tools.
Secure the collective land rights of villages and families.
Prevent and resolve land conflicts.
Improve relations among people and authorities involved in land management.
Promote the involvement of women and young people in land management.
Ensure the sustainable development of land through rural agro-ecology.

Actions

Build the capacity of the 17 existing Land Commissions and establish and strengthen 100 new Land Commissions.
Train community leaders and Land Commissions in land management, land-use planning, and conflict management.
Secure collective lands and forests.
Establish village land cadasters and train young people in mapping and demarcation.
Prevent and resolve conflicts, foster understanding and ownership of legal provision, establish and build the capacity of new land management organizations.
Build capacity of village leaders, local authorities, police and judges in negotiation and non-violent conflict management.
Build capacity of women, youth, and vulnerable groups to participate effectively to secure their rights and contribute to land governance and management.
Develop and support multi-stakeholder platforms for dialogue and exchange.
Support recognition of eight municipal-level commissions and nine village-level commissions.
Develop a consensus-based management plan for a pilot intercommunal forest.
Support negotiation of an agreement between a private mining company and a communal council.
Establish and facilitate a national multi-stakeholder strategic orientation committee to support the implementation of the government’s Agricultural Land Policy.

"Once collective lands have been secured and a village's territory has been mapped, the land commissions provide a space for community consultations on allocation and use of land and resources. It is in this space that women, youth, and vulnerable groups can negotiate access to land and resources. We need to prepare them and support them as they join, participate, and assert their rights. "

- Boubacar Diarra, Project Coordinator

Expected results

17 existing Land Commissions operate effectively.
100 new Land Commissions operate effectively.
Land Commissions manage land effectively.
Land Commissions to manage conflict effectively.
10,000 hectares of community lands are identified, demarcated and registered.
Land transactions are recorded.
Local conventions for managing land and resources are developed and adopted.
Space for cross-border dialogue created to address issues with Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso and Guinea.
Land Commissions establish three communal forests at the municipal and inter-municipal levels.
Multi-stakeholder platforms are established at village, municipal, and regional levels.
Women and young people are members of their Land Commission.
Women and young people participate in local consultations on land management.
Communities and family farms improve land management through agro-ecology.

Expected impact

Rural communities resolve conflicts amongst themselves and with government, investors, immigrants, and settlers, setting the stage for peaceful co-existence, development, and environmental protection.
Mali is better prepared to scaled up Land Commissions across the country, including areas in the north where conflict is more prevalent.
Communities, government, civil society, and private sector establish more trusting, supportive, and productive relationships that enable implementation of the FLA.

Ibrahima Coulibaly
CNOP President and Project Coordinator
CNOP
i_ibracoul@yahoo.fr

Boubacar Diarra
Program Advisor
HELVETAS Swiss Intercooperation
boubadiarr@yahoo.fr

Moussa Djire
Tenure Facility Country Focal Point
djiremous@yahoo.fr