“LANDex training on land governance assessment and monitoring” was organized in Ulaanbaatar. Representatives from India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Mongolia, and Kyrgyzstan participated in the Asian Regional Training, organized by the Green Alliance for Environment and Development on May 21-22 with the support of the International Land Coalition (ILC). The training provided an overview of the Land Governance Monitoring Index data, expected results and objectives, an introduction to Land Governance Monitoring, indicators and methodologies, and information on data sources, global and national levels.
Vard Anseyev, a researcher in charge of research and information at the International Land Coalition, said, "LANDex's goal is to monitor the entire land in a database and to introduce ten key concepts. For example, human-based, human-centered data is intended to promote diversity. The World Bank and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) can create this data.
Creating this multi-source data will increase the participation of all members of society and reveal the hidden. In particular, land information is available only to government agencies and land authorities. LANDex, on the other hand, is open-source, accessible to everyone in the country, and a free policy tool worldwide. Anyone can log in, but some information may not be included for political reasons.
LANDex is not a project. It is a tool developed by the International Land Coalition and Land Experts and aims to create a data ecosystem around the world. The establishment of an internationally recognized land control system will protect vulnerable people who are not fully represented in the country. This means that the country's policy will be people-centered.
This is one of the Sustainable Development Goals. The Millennium Challenge Corporation has included land issues in its global agenda. The 196-issue agenda addresses a wide range of issues worldwide. The International Land Coalition (ILC) is committed to expanding this Sustainable Development Goal. It is mainly aimed at expanding office-based operations, upgrading outdated data systems, and increasing resources.
Three years ago, when ILC developed its framework, there were more than 170 Land Monitoring initiatives. How to work on this vast resource of information is to fill in the gaps left by the Sustainable Development Goals and work on the principle of "no one is left out." The system will involve more young people and women and build their capacity. It will diversify and democratize data.
Within the ecosystem, we are focusing on human-centered data. The source aims to promote diversity. They ask how reliable your data can be if all the information is combined. This is a big issue and is not controlled by any organization or country. Of course, not everyone likes Wikipedia. There will be specific quality filters. Anyone can send and enter information from anywhere. Data will be available only after checking it.
The main thing we are talking about is the key indicator. These 32 indicators are standardized by the ILC and defined by perfect methodologies. LANDex does not try to do everything new. We are seen as competitors to the Sustainable Development Goals, but we are not. We will unite resources and build a stronger union through cooperation. It teaches a way to integrate other initiatives, including global ones. ”
During the training, participants learned about the key indicators of LANDex and how to implement these measures with the support of their country. In addition, the survey-based indicators were calculated in detail, and the regional PRI or Property Rights Index, Field Survey data, ten commitment indicators, implementation of Land Governance Monitoring, and data collection methodology were introduced. It is also linked to the Sustainable Development Goals and the voluntary recommendations for responsible governance of forests and fisheries.
Darm Raj, the representative of Nepal, also shared his experience of working in LANDex in his country.
