Mekong Region Land Governance Project
PHASE TWO
In Phase 2 the focus is on continuing to address land governance issues in the CLMV region, but with a shift towards supporting the strategic engagement of reform actors in the policy making processes at national, sub-national and regional levels.
An End of Phase Evaluation and Project Formulation was conducted in September 2017 to review all aspects of the project and determine the feasibility for a second phase. After a year of transition, MRLG Phase 2 has started in October 2018 and will operate for four years.
Introduction
Built on Phase 1 successes, the project Phase 2 remains focused on addressing land governance issues in the CLMV region, but with a shift towards supporting the strategic engagement of reform actors in the policy making processes at national, sub-national and regional levels.
MRLG will establish alliances of reform actors at regional level and in each country that will collaborate on two main thematic areas: the recognition of Customary Tenure (CT) and Responsible Agricultural Investment (RAI). Land Rights Awareness Raising, Land Conflict Transformation and Gender are cross-cutting themes that will remain fundamental to MRLG strategic approaches. Each alliance will develop collaboratively their strategies and programmes based on a Theory of Change approach that will form the basis for specific projects.
MRLG Project Implementation Unit (PIU) office is based in Vientiane, Laos with three sub-offices in Cambodia, Myanmar, and Vietnam.
The Mekong Region Land Governance Project (MRLG) is a project of the Government of Switzerland, through the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), with co-financing from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the Government of Luxembourg.
The MRLG project is implemented by Land Equity International (LEI) in partnership with GRET Professionals for Fair Development and supported by the Deutsche Gesellschaft fűr Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).
Recognition of Customary Tenure (CT)
Built on Phase 1 successes, the project Phase 2 remains focused on addressing land governance issues in the CLMV region, but with a shift towards supporting the strategic engagement of reform actors in the policy making processes at national, sub-national and regional levels.
Customary Tenure is of key importance to millions of rural families in the Mekong region. It covers a wide range of resources and land use types, and it is practiced both by upland ethnic minorities and by lowland farmers. Policy development will benefit from improved understanding and the sharing of experiences between countries, thereby appreciating the full scope of customary tenure.
Responsible Agriculture Investment (RAI)
The development of responsible agricultural investment is based on cooperation between three parties; communities and farmers’ organisations, companies, and government, particularly local authorities. Academia and civil society organisations play an important supporting role.
Because the application of RAI principles implies higher costs during and initial stage, responsible investors have a disadvantage in the short term. Government policy and regulation is needed to “level the playing field” by making the application of some of these principles legally binding and by providing companies with suitable incentives.
In the long term; however, the application of RAI should be profitable for the investors as well as for the communities.
Government and the private sector of the region have started to promote RAI principles. Efforts are underway by Vietnamese and Chinese sectoral bodies to develop codes of conduct for companies investing abroad. The Lao government is also developing initiatives in the same area, including specific regulations for banana production. Inter-government coordination between FDI “origin” and “recipient” countries is also developing.
Learning And Alliance
The main objective of this MRLG project component is to strengthen the capacity of stakeholders acting in support of securing land rights for family farmers through exchange of experiences, knowledge, and capabilities at the national and regional levels. These types of activity are open to a wide range of reform actors, the only condition being the willing to share experiences with others in the common interests of learning.
