Addis Ababa — The Land Policy Initiative (LPI) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), in collaboration with the Government of Niger, will organize a series of events to launch the "EU-SDC Programme on Land Governance in Africa" between 24 and 27 February 2015, in Niamey, Niger.

The programme promotes an integrated approach to the implementation of the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security (VGGT) and the Framework and Guidelines on Land Policy in Africa (F&G). The aim of the VGGT and the F&G is to promote food security and sustainable development by improving secure access to land, fisheries, and forests, and by protecting the legitimate tenure rights of people, especially the poor and vulnerable groups.

"This programme is the result of a long-term collaboration between the LPI and FAO, and of the need for increased synergy between our actions so that we can more efficiently support Member States in tackling their specific challenges related to land governance and food security," said Ms Joan Kagwanja, Chief of the LPI.

The ten country projects will be implemented with a goal to mainstream the VGGT and F&G into policy, legal and institutional processes through awareness raising, capacity development, technical facilitation, strengthening of partnerships, and monitoring and evaluation in each country. These countries are: Angola, Burundi, Côte d'Ivoire, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Niger, Somalia, South Sudan, and Swaziland.

The EU-SDC Programme on Land Governance in Africais supported by the European Union (EU) to the tune of about EUR 33 million, provided directly to ten countries in Africa, with a supportive transversal component being implemented jointly by FAO and LPI.

The official launch of the programme, to be held on 24 February, will be followed by a multi-stakeholder awareness raising workshop on VGGT and F&G. On 25 and 26 February a first coordination meeting of the ten projects will take place, followed by a comprehensive training on VGGT and F&G for project coordinators and implementers on 27 February 2015.

The launch will bring together about 60 participants representing governments, farmers' and civil society organisations, the media, and implementing partner organizations.

The Land Policy Initiative is a joint programme of the tripartite consortium consisting of the African Union Commission (AUC), the African Development Bank (AfDB), and United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA). Its mandate is to facilitate the implementation of the AU Declaration on Land Issues and Challenges in Africa.