Phase III of the Mekong Region Land Governance project closed in December 2025. This page will remain active for a limited time, but all publication materials and toolkits have been transferred to a permanent home on the Land Portal site here.

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เข้าถึงคลังทรัพยากรและการวิจัยของ MRLG เพื่อการตัดสินใจอย่างมีข้อมูล และค้นพบความรู้มากมายเพื่อขับเคลื่อนการเปลี่ยนแปลงเชิงบวกและผลกระทบที่สำคัญ

Lessons from a decade of policy engagement in the land governance sector in the Mekong Region (MRLG Capex study executive summary)

The Mekong Region Land Governance Project (MRLG), active from 2014 to 2025, aimed to strengthen land tenure security in Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, and Viet Nam through a politically informed, adaptive approach. Key findings reveal that MRLG’s success lay in building multistakeholder alliances, fostering constructive government engagement, and using evidence-based advocacy to influence policy. The project advanced normative change and policy reforms—such as contributing to Viet Nam’s 2024 Land L…

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Lessons learned from policy engagement in Lao PDR: Instruction 0457 and the establishment of responsible agricultural investment practices

This case study highlights strategies, challenges and lessons learned from multi-year engagement of MRLG and its partners in shaping Instruction 0457 and related policies including a revised Law on Investment Promotion. It is part of MRLG’s Capitalisation of Experience (Capex), which draws lessons learned from over 10 years of MRLG policy and practice engagement in the Mekong region.

Understanding Customary Tenure in Diverse Settings in Myanmar (brief in Burmese)

This publication presents findings from field research in Myanmar's Shan and Karen States and Magway Region, examining how customary tenure (CT) systems are evolving. It highlights how CT, often weakening and influenced by statutory tenure, faces pressure from land individualization. The study advocates strengthening CT for its social legitimacy and potential for more secure land tenure.

Understanding Customary Tenure in Diverse Settings in Myanmar (Burmese)

This publication presents findings from field research in Myanmar's Shan and Karen States and Magway Region, examining how customary tenure (CT) systems are evolving. It highlights how CT, often weakening and influenced by statutory tenure, faces pressure from land individualization. The study advocates strengthening CT for its social legitimacy and potential for more secure land tenure.

Lessons learned from policy engagement for community rights within protected areas of Cambodia

This case study, part of the CapEx series, highlights Cambodia’s efforts to strengthen Indigenous and community land rights within protected areas through policy reform, advocacy, and inclusive forest governance initiatives led by MRLG and the Customary Tenure Alliance.

Understanding Customary Tenure in Diverse Settings in Myanmar (Brief)

This publication presents findings from field research in Myanmar's Shan and Karen States and Magway Region, examining how customary tenure (CT) systems are evolving. It highlights how CT, often weakening and influenced by statutory tenure, faces pressure from land individualization. The study advocates strengthening CT for its social legitimacy and potential for more secure land tenure.

Understanding Customary Tenure in Diverse Settings in Myanmar

This publication presents findings from field research in Myanmar's Shan and Karen States and Magway Region, examining how customary tenure (CT) systems are evolving. It highlights how CT, often weakening and influenced by statutory tenure, faces pressure from land individualization. The study advocates strengthening CT for its social legitimacy and potential for more secure land tenure.

Luật Đất đai mới: triển vọng và thách thức cho nông dân sản xuất nhỏ ở Việt Nam

Luật Đất đai 2024 ở Việt Nam giải quyết những hạn chế trong Luật Đất đai 2013 trước đó, nhằm hiện đại hóa quản lý đất đai và thúc đẩy sự công bằng, minh bạch trong các giao dịch đất đai. Luật này cũng mở ra các cơ hội cho những hộ nông dân sản xuất nhỏ thông qua việc cho phép tích tụ và tập trung đất nông nghiệp để sản xuất quy mô lớn hơn, đồng thời cho phép sử dụng đất đa mục đích như kết hợp nông nghiệp với chế biến và dịch vụ. Ngoài ra, luật cũng mở rộng thêm việc công nhận quyền sử dụng đất…

State of Land in the Mekong Region: Policy Brief 1

Pathways towards sustainable land systems (policy brief 1)

The Mekong Region's agrarian transition has faced challenges in achieving poverty reduction, gender equality, and environmental sustainability. The study points to the need for policies to address these issues to ensure a more inclusive and sustainable future.

Certainly! Here's the excerpt:

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This report provides a comparative analysis of the processes and lessons learned from four pilots on Community-Based Forest Management (CBFM) and community-based value-chain and forestry enterprise development undertaken by CT Alliance members with support from the MRLG project. Across all pilots, it was observed that promoting customary tenure was crucial for securing legal rights to local forests. For instance, promoting tea tree tenure for the local Dao people in Sung village, Hoa Binh, and developing customary practices for langur conservation enhanced forest management. Value-chain enhancements for bamboo in Ke village and Shan tea in Sung village incentivized sustainable forest resource management through improved customary tenure practices. Moreover, where formal tenure rights were devolved to communities, CT Alliance members facilitated self-organization and governance using statutory law and local customs. These efforts aimed to align forest management with community values, securing tenure for local communities.

However, challenges remained, such as improving benefit-sharing and village fund management in Hang Nam and Tul villages. Despite efforts from PanNature in engaging with villagers, significant changes were elusive, possibly due to project limitations in duration and resources. Similarly, securing long-term tenure rights in Sung village faced obstacles, with a temporary co-management agreement highlighting concerns about post-project sustainability for local authorities and the Da River PF-MB.

Broader recommendations for sustainable community-based forest management in Vietnam include developing a national CBFM policy and implementing support programs. Currently, despite significant forest allocations to local communities, sustainability issues persist post-allocation, hindering effective forest conservation and development. Establishing a national CBFM Development Programme and reactivating the CBFM Technical Working Group under VNFOREST could enhance policy alignment and support for CBFM practices nationwide. Aligning CBFM with national and sub-national programs like PFES and NRAP/PRAP is also recommended to ensure sustained impacts beyond project timelines.

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Comparative analysis of the customary tenure pilots in Viet Nam: Key processes and lessons learned

The case study "Comparative Analysis of the Customary Tenure Pilots in Viet Nam: Key processes and lessons learned" highlights the importance of customary tenure, value-chain development, and formal rights for sustainable forest governance, recommending national policy support.

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