Community Land Titling (CLT)

(Lessons learned from NT2 Project) Presented by

the Resettlement Management Unit of NT2 Project

Vientiane Capital, 9 November 2015

Contents

• Brief information about NT2 Project • Background• Outputs of PLUP• Challenges• Responses to challenges• Results of many discussions• Key steps for CLT

Overview of NT2 Project

• Construction of Nakai Dam created a 450 km2 Reservoir at full level

• Areas of 17 villages on Nakai Plateau inundated • 6301 people in 1271 households needed to be resettled

Background

• CA requirements: - individual land titling for housing plots and agricultural land,(completed by 2010); - participatory land use planning (PLUP) (started in 2009 and finalized in 2011 using the revised PLUP procedure developed under the MOU between NLMA and MAF: Manual Participatory Agriculture and Forest land Use Planning at Village and Village Cluster Level, issued in March 2010);• The idea of piloting CLT was an outcome of prior LUP process;• Although the project’s CA required these, actions were

undertaken by provincial and district authorities under the requirements and mandate of Lao law;

Outputs of PLUP

• PLUP ensured: - agreed village boundaries and inter-village demarcation agreements for resettled villages; - land use zones identified and mapped with hand-held GPS equipment; - concrete boundary markers with GPS points to physically demarcate zone and village boundaries on the ground;

Outputs of PLUP

• PLUP identified, measured and mapped: - village boundaries; - additional agricultural land areas (reclassified from degraded forest land); - 0.66 ha agricultural plots, titled to individual resettler families; - village housing area; - potential village residential expansion area; - community infrastructure; - Reservoir islands; - Reservoir drawdown areas; - village forest land;

Outputs of PLUP

• Once land zones identified and mapped, results were painted onto a board which was then located in the village office premises for all to see;

• Boundaries markers placed along each land use zone boundaries;

• In early 2012, the Provincial Governor of KM supported and authorized the idea of issuing CLT for land use zones in each resettlement village;

Challenges

• Cost of community titles?• Land should be titled as a parcel or as land use

zone?• What the use rules and regulations should be for

each land use zone?• Hand-held GPS tools sufficiently accurate to

determine boundaries compared to theodolite?• Status of community land entitlement of merged

villages;• Mapping process consistent with GoL’s standard of

Lap97;

Responses to challenges

• Many discussions with stakeholders were organized;

• The Rules and Regulations (R&R) of the CLTs were discussed and agreed with provincial and Nakai district authorities, using national laws and policies on land and forest as the accepted reference framework. Customary rights and regulations were also clarified and integrated into the R&R;

Results of many discussions

• Land use zones have Land Management Committee(LMC);• Management and use of CLT land is collectively determined

by the Hamlet (Khoum) and by the Hamlet (Khoum) Authority;

• Requests to use CLT land must be submitted to Khoum Authorities in writing;

• CLT land cannot either individually or collectively be used as collateral, sold, transferred, inherited, leased, mortgaged or loaned, either by the khoum Authority, or by a member of an eligible family, or by Village Authorities, or by any person or organisation within or outside the khoum;

Results of many discussions

• Community land titles were determined on the basis of: - land parcel for community infrastructure and agricultural land; - land use zone for forest land (irrespective of whether the forest areas are contiguous with each other or not);• Community titles issued for: - common agricultural land not allocated to individuals but with defined utilization rights; - forest land; - community infrastructure (market, irrigation system…);• State titles: schools, teacher’s housing, health clinics;

Results of many discussions

• Cost of community titles: - by land use zone: $30/title - by parcel: $130/title

Village map

Village Boundaries Marker

Land Categories Marker

Handover of CLT

• The first handover of CLT for 5 villages in southern areas was held on 15 January 2013 and witnessed by the PG of KM, Chairman of RC and Ms. Keiko Miwa, country director of WB ;

• The second handover of CLT for the remaining villages was held on14 March 2013 and witnessed by Mme. Souvanhpheng Boubphanouvong from NA;

Key steps for CLT

1. Train PAFO/PONRE, DAFO/DONRE staff in updated PLUP methodologies

2. Agree on the unit of entitlement for a CLT (this means, who is eligible to use CLT land and to decide upon its R&R)

3. Undertake PLUP, map and mark each eligible land use zone for a CLT

4. Negotiate and sign inter-village boundary agreements5. Obtain district and provincial endorsement of PLUP outputs6. Place physical boundary markers between villages, and

around CLT use zones, particularly demarcating agricultural land from forest land, and incise GPS points on each marker

Key steps for CLT

7. Conduct stakeholder discussions to draw up Community Rules and Regulations for each land use zone8. Obtain village and district endorsement of final Rules and Regulations9. Agree budgets for PONRE/DONRE validation of PLUP mapping, and issuance of CLTs10. Issue CLTs to communities11. Issue copies of agreed and endorsed Rules & Regulations to CLT holders12. Arrange for CLT eligible persons to vote in their Land Management Committee members for different CLT use zones13. Draw up land management plans for each CLT zone

THANK YOU FOR YOUR KIND ATTENTION