International Land Coalition Rangelands Initiative

International Land Coalition Rangelands Initiative: Making rangelands secure

What does the ILC Rangelands Initiative do?

The Rangelands Initiative supports governments, ILC members and partners to develop and/or influence enabling policy and legislation, and implement policy and legislation in a manner that best helps productive and sustainable rangeland use. This is achieved through the joint identification of solutions based on innovation and practice using the strengths of ILC members and partners working together. The Rangelands Initiative also improves the understanding of rangelands and appropriate governance, planning and tenure systems through research and the documentation of good practice. Recognizing the value of rangelands and the livelihood systems supporting them, the Rangelands Initiative advocates with local rangeland users for their inclusion in decisions made about their lands.

In Kenya, RECONCILE provides technical support to the National Land Commission in the development and production of guidelines on County Spatial Planning. RECONCILE is facilitating the input of the Pastoral Parliamentary Group and the Coast Parliamentary Group in the finalization of the Community Land Bill. Other activities include the hosting of European parliamentarians on a visit to learn about pastoralism in East Africa, and the co-organisation of Kenya’s first Rangelands Congress in 2015. In Tanzania, a national engagement strategy, developed by ILC members, prioritised rangelands as one of two key focus areas. The implementation of this strategy will be facilitated by the third phase of the Sustainable Rangeland Management Project (SRMP) funded by the United Nation’s International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), with the technical support of ILRI. SRMP is improving the application of national policy, legislation and guidelines on land and land-use planning in order to protect grazing areas and livestock routes as part of village land, including cross-village boundaries. A key innovation of the project has been the development of ‘joint’ village land-use planning, now incorporated within the 2015 Tanzanian government Livestock Modernization Initiative.

Making rangelands secure
Established in 2010, the International Land Coalition (ILC) Rangelands Initiative facilitates learning between, and provides technical support to government and other actors working to make rangelands more tenure secure. Coordinated and supported globally by the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), the initiative works through ILC members in Africa, Asia and Latin America led by RECONCILE (Resource Conflict Institute) Kenya, JASIL Mongolia and MARAG (Maldahari Rural Action Group) India, and FUNDAPAZ (Foundation for Development in Justice and Peace) Argentina. A Steering Committee, comprising key experts and specialized organizations, guides the development of the Rangelands Initiative.
What does the ILC Rangelands Initiative do? 

The Rangelands Initiative supports governments, ILC members and partners to develop and/or influence enabling policy and legislation, and implement policy and legislation in a manner that best helps productive and sustainable rangeland use. This is achieved through the joint identification of solutions based on innovation and practice using the strengths of ILC members and partners working together. The Rangelands Initiative also improves the understanding of rangelands and appropriate governance, planning and tenure systems through research and the documentation of good practice. Recognizing the value of rangelands and the livelihood systems supporting them, the Rangelands Initiative advocates with local rangeland users for their inclusion in decisions made about their lands.