Burundi, Amahoro@Scale – An integrated approach towards improved tenure security and land governance in Burundi

Burundi is one of the poorest and most challenging countries in the world regarding advancing land governance and contributing to sustainable socio-economic development. With a rapidly growing population and a vast majority of that population depending on agriculture for their food and livelihoods, land scarcity is an acute challenge for the country. This challenge is exacerbated by the fact that land governance in Burundi is characterized by a weak government and high levels of traditional and informal land governance procedures.

Programme Objective:

The wider objective of the project is improved tenure security and land governance in Burundi. This is done by developing a roadmap for nation-wide scaling of land tenure registration based on the coverage and application of lessons learned in Makamba province, whilst contributing to a more enabling environment for good land governance, particularly relating to legislation regarding land division and succession. Gender equality and equity is a cross-cutting theme across all activities of the project. The project will focus on Nyanza Lac, a commune in the Makamba province, as well as national-level for the roll out of roadmaps and lessons learned from the pilot project.

The specific objectives are:

1. Improved land administration, through piloting and finalizing Land Tenure Registration (LTR) in Makamba province, and use the experience of current and previous LTR activities in Burundi to prepare the scaling up of LTR across the country.
2. Resolved land related conflicts through alternative dispute resolution mechanisms, and
3. Enhanced cooperation on land governance between (inter)national NGOs, CSOs and knowledge institutes as well as with governmental organisations.

The expected results of the project are:

1. The tested LTR approach is implemented in Nyanza Lac through the operationalization of local land service (SFC);
2. Local land conflict resolution mechanisms are effectively resolving land conflicts in Nyanza Lac;
3. The development of a business case will result in the rollout of financially sustainable and technically functional SFCs around the country, and
4. An institutional enabling environment is created, which facilitates cooperation on land governance between (inter)national NGOs, CSOs and knowledge institutes as well as with governmental organisations.

VNG International is in particular responsible for improved land governance, which encompasses the rules, processes and structures through which decisions are made about access to land and its use, the way the decisions are implemented and enforced, the way that competing interests in land are managed and the formal and informal actors involved in these processes. This includes:

• The commune and the SFC have strengthened capacities on good governance by training and coaching commune administrators, technical staff of the commune and the SFC on the principles and applications of good governance practice and the promotion of inclusive governance and decision making, This includes establishing a participative budgeting process within the commune;
• Support communes so that the state lands in Nyanza Lac are identified and registered;
• Support communes in ensuring effective delivery of land related services in a non-discriminatory manner, by ensuring communes and their staff are knowledgeable on the Land law and act accordingly, as well as increased awareness of population and increased dialogue on the land rights of women;
• Development of a stakeholder analysis and a lobby and advocacy strategy for the communes on land management in Burundi;
• Develop and pilot a model for SFCs to improve their financial viability and sustainability of their service provision;
• Development of a roadmap for nation-wide scaling of the model for SFCs through regional fora to present and discuss the business model and its implementation. Participants will be the president of the commune council, the commune administrator, and women leading RFECOM (rãseau des femmes ãlues communales);
• Organisation of exchanges to enhance cooperation on land governance between (inter)national NGOs, CSOs and knowledge institutes as well as with and between local and central levels of government.