The Land Portal Foundation and the Open Data Charter have released the report State of Land Information in Madagascar: An Open Data Action Framework for Madagascar, shedding light on the state of the land data ecosystem in Madagascar. The report serves as a comprehensive diagnostic tool and guide, aiming to catalyze change and foster conversations about data transparency and land governance in Madagascar.
Under the umbrella of the Land Dialogues series, the third webinar of this year’s series “Carbon markets and Indigenous lands : The importance of free, prior and informed consent” took place on September 14th, 2023. The webinar drew in a little under 500 participants and featured panelists from Indigenous leaders to academics. The series is organized by a consortium of organizations, including the Land Portal Foundation, the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the Ford Foundation and the Tenure Facility.
This data story reflects on the complexities of measuring the impact of land governance projects and summarize some of the best practices on impact evaluation from the well-known guidelines on the topic.
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Countries
Located in Central Africa, Gabon has some rather unique characteristics in terms of land tenure. It is indeed one of the most sparsely populated countries in the world, one of the most urbanized and one of the richest in forests. Gabon's economy is mainly based on the exploitation of natural resources, notably oil, mining and timber. These activities occupy the vast majority of the territory. In 2022, Gabon was the most prosperous country in Africa with a high human development index.
Mexico is characterized by decentralized land governance. Most of the population lives in urban areas, although highly concentrated in a few cities, and about 21% live in rural areas. The ejidos and agrarian communities-both forms of communal land ownership-that emerged from the Mexican Revolution continue to significantly shape land governance in Mexico today.
Issues
One third of the world’s soils - including farmland, forests, rangelands, and urban land - are already degraded and it is estimated that this number could rise to almost 90% by 2050. Land Degradation occurs naturally, but research shows that land degradation is increasingly caused directly or indirectly by unsustainable human activities, notably deforestation, overgrazing, mining or intensive agriculture. This has driven biodiversity loss, desertification, and led to a significant increase in greenhouse gas emissions.
The SDG Land Tracker provides easy access to official data and information on all land-specific SDG indicators. It concisely explains the indicators, why they are important, and tracks progress.