CFS Policy Convergence Products Database

States have the power to allocate tenure rights in various forms, from limited use to full ownership. Policies should recognize the range of tenure rights and right holders. Policies should specify the means of allocation of rights, such as allocation based on historical use or other means. Where necessary, those who are allocated tenure rights should be provided with support so they can enjoy their rights. States should determine whether they retain any form of control over land, fisheries and forests that have been allocated.

Where States own or control land, fisheries and forests, they should determine the use and control of these resources in light of broader social, economic and environmental objectives. They should ensure that all actions are consistent with their existing obligations under national and international law, and with due regard to voluntary commitments under applicable regional and international instruments.

Noting that there are publicly-owned land, fisheries and forests that are collectively used and managed (in some national contexts referred to as commons), States should, where applicable, recognize and protect such publicly-owned land, fisheries and forests and their related systems of collective use and management, including in processes of allocation by the State.

States should determine which of the land, fisheries and forests they own or control will be retained and used by the public sector, and which of these will be allocated for use by others and under what conditions.

Responsible investments should do no harm, safeguard against dispossession of legitimate tenure right holders and environmental damage, and should respect human rights. Such investments should be made working in partnership with relevant levels of government and local holders of tenure rights to land, fisheries and forests, respecting their legitimate tenure rights. They should strive to further contribute to policy objectives, such as poverty eradication; food security and sustainable use of land, fisheries and forests; support local communities; contribute to rural development; promote [...]

State and non-state actors should acknowledge that responsible public and private investments are essential to improve food security. Responsible governance of tenure of land, fisheries and forests encourages tenure right holders to make responsible investments in these resources, increasing sustainable agricultural production and generating higher incomes. States should promote and support responsible investments in land, fisheries and forests that support broader social, economic and environmental objectives under a variety of farming systems. States should ensure that all actions [...]

In the case of indigenous peoples and their communities, States should ensure that all actions are consistent with their existing obligations under national and international law, and with due regard to voluntary commitments under applicable regional and international instruments, including as appropriate from the International Labour Organization Convention (No 169) concerning Indigenous and Tribal Peoples in Independent Countries and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. States and other parties should hold good faith consultation with indigenous peoples [...]

States should provide safeguards to protect legitimate tenure rights, human rights, livelihoods, food security and the environment from risks that could arise from large-scale transactions in tenure rights. Such safeguards could include introducing ceilings on permissible land transactions and regulating how transfers exceeding a certain scale should be approved, such as by parliamentary approval. States should consider promoting a range of production and investment models that do not result in the large-scale transfer of tenure rights to investors, and should encourage partnerships with [...]

States should determine with all affected parties, consistent with the principles of consultation and participation of these Guidelines, the conditions that promote responsible investments and then should develop and publicize policies and laws that encourage responsible investments, respect human rights, and promote food security and sustainable use of the environment. Laws should require agreements for investments to clearly define the rights and duties of all parties to the agreement. Agreements for investments should comply with national legal frameworks and investment codes.

Considering that smallholder producers and their organizations in developing countries provide a major share of agricultural investments that contribute significantly to food security, nutrition, poverty eradication and environmental resilience, States should support investments by smallholders as well as public and private smallholder-sensitive investments.

All forms of transactions in tenure rights as a result of investments in land, fisheries and forests should be done transparently in line with relevant national sectoral policies and be consistent with the objectives of social and economic growth and sustainable human development focusing on smallholders.

Given the importance of small-scale producers for national food security and social stability, States should ensure that when facilitating market operations of tenure transactions, they protect the tenure rights of small-scale producers.

States should, with appropriate consultation and participation, provide transparent rules on the scale, scope and nature of allowable transactions in tenure rights and should define what constitutes large-scale transactions in tenure rights in their national context.

States should ensure that the planning and process for expropriation are transparent and participatory. Anyone likely to be affected should be identified, and properly informed and consulted at all stages. Consultations, consistent with the principles of these Guidelines, should provide information regarding possible alternative approaches to achieve the public purpose, and should have regard to strategies to minimize disruption of livelihoods. States should be sensitive where proposed expropriations involve areas of particular cultural, religious or environmental significance, or where [...]

Subject to their national law and legislation and in accordance with national context, States should expropriate only where rights to land, fisheries or forests are required for a public purpose. States should clearly define the concept of public purpose in law, in order to allow for judicial review. States should ensure that all actions are consistent with their national law as well as their existing obligations under national and international law, and with due regard to voluntary commitments under applicable regional and international instruments. They should respect all legitimate [...]

States should, prior to eviction or shift in land use which could result in depriving individuals and communities from access to their productive resources, explore feasible alternatives in consultation with the affected parties, consistent with the principles of these Guidelines, with a view to avoiding, or at least minimizing, the need to resort to evictions.

Where evictions are considered to be justified for a public purpose as a result of expropriation of land, fisheries and forests, States should conduct such evictions and treat all affected parties in a manner consistent with their relevant obligations to respect, protect, and fulfil human rights.

Where the land, fisheries and forests are not needed due to changes of plans, States should give the original right holders the first opportunity to re-acquire these resources. In such a case the re-acquisition should take into consideration the amount of compensation received in return for the expropriation.

States, with the participation of the involved parties, should monitor and evaluate the outcomes of redistributive reform programmes, including associated support policies, as listed in paragraph 15.8, and their impacts on access to land and food security of both men and women and, where necessary, States should introduce corrective measures.

States should ensure a fair valuation and prompt compensation in accordance with national law. Among other forms, the compensation may be, for example, in cash, rights to alternative areas, or a combination.

All parties should endeavour to prevent corruption, particularly through use of objectively assessed values, transparent and decentralized processes and services, and a right to appeal.

To the extent that resources permit, States should ensure that implementing agencies have the human, physical, financial and other forms of capacity.

States should address tenure in disaster prevention and preparedness programmes. Information on legitimate tenure rights should be collected for areas that could be affected through a process consistent with the principles of consultation and participation of these Guidelines. Systems for recording legitimate tenure rights should be resilient to natural disasters, including off-site storage of records, to allow right holders to prove their rights and relocate their parcels and other spatial units. States should strive to identify areas for the temporary resettlement of people who could [...]

States should ensure that the legitimate tenure rights to land, fisheries and forests of all individuals, communities or peoples likely to be affected, with an emphasis on farmers, small-scale food producers, and vulnerable and marginalized people, are respected and protected by laws, policies, strategies and actions with the aim to prevent and respond to the effects of climate change consistent with their respective obligations, as applicable, in terms of relevant climate change framework agreements.

States should ensure that all actions are consistent with their existing obligations under national and international law, and with due regard to voluntary commitments under applicable regional and international instruments. All parties should act, taking into consideration relevant international principles, including as appropriate the United Nations Principles on Housing and Property Restitution for Refugees and Displaced Persons ('Pinheiro Principles'), and the Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response.

States should facilitate the participation, consistent with the principles of consultation and participation of these Guidelines, of all individuals, communities or peoples, with an emphasis on farmers, small-scale food producers, and vulnerable and marginalized people, who hold legitimate tenure rights, in the negotiations and implementation of mitigation and adaptation programmes.

Where appropriate, States should harmonize legal standards of tenure governance, in accordance with existing obligations under national and international law, and with due regard to voluntary commitments under applicable regional and international instruments. Where appropriate, this should be coordinated with relevant regional bodies and with affected parties. States, with the participation of the affected parties as appropriate, should develop or strengthen existing international measures to administer tenure rights that cross international boundaries. Where appropriate, they should [...]

Where appropriate, States should strive to prepare and implement strategies and actions in consultation and with the participation of all people, women and men, who may be displaced due to climate change. Any provision of alternative land, fisheries, forests and livelihoods for displaced persons should not jeopardize the livelihoods of others. States may also consider offering special assistance to small island and other developing states.

States and other parties should address tenure in the emergency response phase. Any provision of alternative land, fisheries, forests and livelihoods for displaced persons should not jeopardize the rights and livelihoods of others. Legitimate tenure rights of displaced persons should also be recognized, respected and protected. Information on tenure rights and unauthorized use should be disseminated to all affected persons.

All parties should ensure that tenure aspects of land, fisheries and forests are addressed when preventing and preparing for natural disasters and in their responses to them. Regulatory frameworks for tenure, including spatial planning, should be designed to avoid or minimize the potential impacts of natural disasters.

States should ensure, in accordance with their international human rights obligations, that all individuals, including human rights defenders of the progressive realization of the right to adequate food, are accorded equal protection under the law and that due process is guaranteed in all legal proceedings.

States should also promote good governance as an essential factor for sustained economic growth, sustainable development, poverty and hunger eradication and for the realization of all human rights including the progressive realization of the right to adequate food.

Where appropriate and consistent with domestic law, States may assist individuals and groups of individuals to have access to legal assistance to better assert the progressive realization of the right to adequate food.

States should consider adopting a holistic and comprehensive approach to hunger and poverty reduction. Such an approach entails, inter alia, direct and immediate measures to ensure access to adequate food as part of a social safety net; investment in productive activities and projects to improve the livelihoods of the poor and hungry in a sustainable manner; the development of appropriate institutions, functioning markets, a conducive legal and regulatory framework; and access to employment, productive resources and appropriate services.

In order to achieve the progressive realization of the right to adequate food in the context of national food security, States should promote broad-based economic development that is supportive of their food security policies. States should establish policy goals and benchmarks based on the food security needs of their population.

States should assess, in consultation with key stakeholders, the economic and social situation, including the degree of food insecurity and its causes, the nutrition situation and food safety

States should promote adequate and stable supplies of safe food through a combination of domestic production, trade, storage and distribution.

States are encouraged, inter alia and in a sustainable manner, to increase productivity and to revitalize the agriculture sector including livestock, forestry and fisheries through special policies and strategies targeted at small-scale and traditional fishers and farmers in rural areas, and the creation of enabling conditions for private sector participation, with emphasis on human capacity development and the removal of constraints to agricultural production, marketing and distribution.

States should, in accordance with their national law and priorities, as well as their international commitments, improve the functioning of their markets, in particular their agricultural and food markets, in order to promote both economic growth and sustainable development, inter alia, by mobilizing domestic savings, both public and private, by developing appropriate credit policies, by generating sustainable adequate levels of national productive investment through credits in concessional terms and by increasing human capacity.

In developing these strategies, States are encouraged to consult with civil society organizations and other key stakeholders at national and regional levels, including small-scale and traditional farmers, the private sector, women and youth associations, with the aim of promoting their active participation in all aspects of agricultural and food production strategies.

States should provide adequate protection to consumers against fraudulent market practices, misinformation and unsafe food. The measures toward this objective should not constitute unjustified barriers to international trade and should be in conformity with the WTO agreements

States should encourage the development of corporate social responsibility and the commitment of all market players and civil society towards the progressive realization of the right of individuals to adequate food in the context of national food security

States should support, including through regional cooperation, the implementation of national strategies for development, in particular for the reduction of poverty and hunger as well as for the progressive realization of the right to adequate food

States should, as appropriate, promote the development of small-scale local and regional markets and border trade to reduce poverty and increase food security, particularly in poor rural and urban areas.

These strategies should be transparent, inclusive and comprehensive, cut across national policies, programmes and projects, take into account the special needs of girls and women, combine short-term and long-term objectives, and be prepared and implemented in a participatory and accountable manner.

States should put legislation, policies, procedures and regulatory and other institutions in place to ensure non-discriminatory access to markets and to prevent uncompetitive practices in markets

States, taking into account the importance of biodiversity, and consistent with their obligations under relevant international agreements, should consider specific national policies, legal instruments and supporting mechanisms to prevent the erosion of and ensure the conservation and sustainable use of genetic resources for food and agriculture, including, as appropriate, for the protection of relevant traditional knowledge and equitable participation in sharing benefits arising from the use of these resources, and by encouraging, as appropriate, the participation of local and indigenous [...]

States should promote women's full and equal participation in the economy and, for this purpose, introduce, where it does not exist, and implement gender- sensitive legislation providing women with the right to inherit and possess land and other property. States should also provide women with secure and equal access to, control over, and benefits from productive resources, including credit, land, water and appropriate technologies

States should take measures to promote and protect the security of land tenure, especially with respect to women, and poor and disadvantaged segments of society, through legislation that protects the full and equal right to own land and other property, including the right to inherit. As appropriate, States should consider establishing legal and other policy mechanisms, consistent with their international human rights obligations and in accordance with the rule of law, that advance land reform to enhance access for the poor and women. Such mechanisms should also promote conservation and [...]

States should take measures to encourage sustainable development in order to provide opportunities for work that provide remuneration allowing for an adequate standard of living for rural and urban wage earners and their families, and to promote and protect self-employment. For States that have ratified the relevant instruments, working conditions should be consistent with the obligations they have assumed under the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, relevant ILO Conventions and other treaties including human rights conventions

States should promote agricultural research and development, in particular to promote basic food production with its positive effects on basic incomes and its benefits to small and women farmers, as well as poor consumers

Bearing in mind that access to water in sufficient quantity and quality for all is fundamental for life and health, States should strive to improve access to, and promote sustainable use of, water resources and their allocation among users giving due regard to efficiency and the satisfaction of basic human needs in an equitable manner and that balances the requirement of preserving or restoring the functioning of ecosystems with domestic, industrial and agricultural needs, including safeguarding drinking-water quality

States should, within the framework of relevant international agreements, including those on intellectual property, promote access by medium- and smallscale farmers to research results enhancing food security.

In order to improve access to the labour market, States should enhance human capital through education programmes, adult literacy and additional training programmes, as required, regardless of race, colour, gender, language, religion, political opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.

States should design and implement programmes that include different mechanisms of access and appropriate use of agricultural land directed to the poorest populations

States should establish transparent, non-discriminatory eligibility criteria in order to ensure effective targeting of assistance, so that no one who is in need is excluded, or that those not in need of assistance are included. Effective accountability and administrative systems are essential to prevent leakages and corruption. Factors to take into account include household and individual assets and income, nutrition and health status, as well as existing coping mechanisms

States are invited to systematically undertake disaggregated analysis on the food insecurity, vulnerability and nutritional status of different groups in society, with particular attention to assessing any form of discrimination that may manifest itself in greater food insecurity and vulnerability to food insecurity, or in a higher prevalence of malnutrition among specific population groups, or both, with a view to removing and preventing such causes of food insecurity or malnutrition

Consistent with the World Food Summit commitment, States should establish Food Insecurity and Vulnerability Information and Mapping Systems (FIVIMS),in order to identify groups and households particularly vulnerable to food insecurity along with the reasons for their food insecurity. States should develop and identify corrective measures to be implemented both immediately and progressively to provide access to adequate food.

States are invited to take appropriate steps and suggest strategies to contribute to raise awareness of the families of migrants in order to promote efficient use of the remittances of migrants for investments that could improve their livelihoods, including the food security of their families

States should consider, to the extent that resources permit, establishing and maintaining social safety and food safety nets to protect those who are unable to provide for themselves. As far as possible, and with due regard to effectiveness and coverage, States should consider building on existing capacities within communities at risk to provide the necessary resources for social safety and food safety nets to fulfil the progressive realization of the right to adequate food. States may wish to consider the benefits of procuring locally.