This training package provides an introduction to the important, complex, and sometimes daunting theme of improving land governance as a means to enhance gender equality and grassroots participation in land matters. This training package is designed for professionals, working in the field of land, governance, grassroots participation and gender in public institutions or civil society organizations.

The goal of the training is to improve women's land and property rights and promote the participation of grassroots communities in land processes. The focus is on gender equality and grassroots participation as vital dimensions of good land governance. The training package is prepared in two volumes: Trainee's Handbook: Readers and References and; Trainer's Guide and Training Tools.

Training providers and other stakeholders interested in carrying out the training course are encouraged to fully utilize the package and implement it as set out in these two volumes.

It cannot be assumed that women and men benefit in the same way from initiatives in the land sector. Depending on the political, economic and cultural context, it is often women, and particularly poor women, who face significant barriers in obtaining land.

The Gender Evaluation Criteria has been developed as a practical tool to systematically measure the impact of land tools and interventions on women and men, so that one has concrete evidence on their gender dimensions.

This training course on "Designing and evaluating land tools with a gender perspective" has been developed as a complementary package to the Gender Evaluation Criteria, in order to build capacity around how to apply the criteria in practice. It has been designed specifically to enable land professionals to independently use the criteria in their work.

This booklet arises from GLTN's work on Islamic dimensions of land which began in 2004 with the commissioning of research leading to Sait and Lim's "Land, Law and Islam: Property and Human Rights in the Muslim World" (London: Zed Press/UN-HABITAT, 2006). Based on this research a training course on "Islamic Land, Principles and Housing Rights in the Muslim World" has been produced in 2010.

The booklet provides a short summary of the key principles and elements of Islamic dimensions of land. It is intended for land professionals, policy makers, and any other stakeholder working in the land sector, who is looking for a short overview of these aspects of land in Muslim societies. It is intended to provide a wider understanding of how to integrate Islamic dimensions into land projects and programmes.

This technical publication documents and draws lessons from the Philippine's experience in implementing alternative approaches in securing tenure for the urban poor. It also explores how these approaches can be institutionalized to achieve a larger scale and ensure sustainability.

The study examines three approaches: presidential land proclamations, the Community Mortgage Program, and the usufruct arrangement. The key features of each approach are described and their application illustrated through two actual cases.

The approaches are then analyzed in terms of the legal and institutional frameworks that supported their implementation and the benefits they delivered, both as perceived by the beneficiaries and in terms of meeting the broader social need for secure housing and tenure. The analysis also explores the factors which helped in the successful implementation of the approaches, as well as the constraints and difficulties encountered in the process.

Land and Property Tax: a Policy Guide is a companion for government officials and land and property professionals seeking to understand how to establish a viable and vibrant land-based taxation system. Using various examples, alternatives and illustrations around the World, the Guide provides a compelling case for generating local revenue through land and its improvements.

In the Guide, you will find answers to questions such as why land and property taxes are often an important source of local revenue, what the options are for designing and sustaining a land-based tax system, and what needs to be considered in their implementation. The Guide presents a step-by-step approach to implementing a range of land and property taxation policies, strategies, tools and instruments.

 It provides various taxation alternatives that can be adapted to local contexts and local and central authorities' capacities. The Guide will be a valuable resource for local, sub-national and national government officials, community leaders, researchers, urban planners, international and national urban consultants working on land and property taxation, urban land market, urban economies, and land-based finance mainly in developing countries and emerging economies.

Land is increasingly recognised as an important governance issue.  This paper starts from the assumption that the process of reform is as important as the content of the reform.  The paper argues that an understanding of land issues and the reform process from a governance and political economy perspective offers insights that can not only improve the design of reforms, but can also offer tools to support implementation. The paper, jointly developed by staff of FAO and UN-HABITAT, represents another contribution to the broader effort to understand land governance.

The Community Land Trust (CLT) is an increasingly important strategy for addressing affordability of land and housing for low- to moderate-income residents of communities throughout the United States. CLTs are generally non-governmental, nonprofit organizations which acquire land and hold it in trust for the benefit of the local community. They provide opportunities for residents below a certain income threshold to lease the land and buy or rent affordable housing, create community gardens, and/or practice sustainable agriculture and forestry.

In the past 40 years, the nationwide network of CLTs has grown to over 200 organizations. The CLT model holds great promise for meeting affordable housing and land needs in communities around the world. This report explores the CLT concept and history, explains how it works, and offers a series of successful CLT case studies in urban and rural areas.

Esta publicación está destinada a los legisladores y a las autoridades públicas. Es para los que trabajan en la gestión y desarrollo del suelo y buscan las mejores maneras de garantizar los derechos y satisfacer la creciente demanda por suelo. Enfatiza la necesidad por políticas que faciliten el acceso al suelo para todas las secciones de sus poblaciones actuales y futuras- especialmente, para las que tienen ingresos bajos o irregulares. Esta publicación actualiza y revisa la publicación de UN–HABITAT de 2004 “Suelo urbano para todos (“Urban Land for All” en inglés). Se centra en asuntos del suelo urbano, rural y del perímetro urbano.

Los derechos seguros al suelo y la forma de ofrecerlos son importantes para el desarrollo y la reducción de la pobreza. Más que una guía completa y extensa para asuntos más amplio de políticas, gestión y reforma del suelo, este trabajo explica cómo derechos seguros al suelo e instituciones equitativas y eficaces pueden apoyar la buena gobernanza del suelo.

Cette publication fournit un tour d’horizon mondial des droits sur les biens matrimoniaux et de co-propriété, tant dans la législation qu’en pratique, et cherche à cerner des formes de tenure plus innovantes et susceptibles de bénéicier aux femmes.

Designing a Pro-poor Land Recordation System is the first attempt to fill the gaps in the development of new forms of land recordation to assist the implementation of a continuum of land rights approach at scale. It is about the development of the initial design of a pro-poor land recordation system - a recording system aimed at supporting the recognition and protection of a range of rights of the poor.

This publication emphasizes a co-management approach where the community performs a greater role in the design and management of the system. The design also highlights affordability, legitimacy and credibility as key requirements for success. However, it also recognizes that more work and studies are needed to enhance the design and better inform its implementation.