Economic and Social Council

 Distr. GENERAL
7 April 1995
ORIGINAL: ENGLISH

COMMISSION ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Third session

11-28 April 1995

Item 6 of the provisional agenda*



    *   E/CN.17/1995/1.





   REVIEW OF SECTORAL CLUSTER:  LAND, DESERTIFICATION, FORESTS

                        AND BIODIVERSITY



            Letter dated 3 April 1995 from the Permanent Representative

            of the Netherlands to the United Nations addressed to the

                        Secretary-General





    From 20 to 22 February 1995, the Netherlands hosted the International

Workshop on Integrated Land Management.



    The Workshop was an inter-sessional meeting, held to prepare for the

third session of the Commission on Sustainable Development (11-28 April 1995),

which will discuss integrated land management as one of its sectoral themes.



    I have the honour to transmit to you the report of the Workshop (see

annex) and would appreciate if you could arrange for the report to be

circulated as an official document for consideration by the Commission on

Sustainable Development at its current session, under item 6 of its agenda.





                                      (Signed)  N. H. BIEGMAN    

                                                 Ambassador      

                                         Permanent Representative





                              Annex





        INTERNATIONAL WORKSHOP ON AGENDA 21 - CHAPTER 10





      Integrated Planning and Management of Land Resources



 International Agricultural Centre, Wageningen, the Netherlands

                      February 20-22, 1995





         Conclusions and Recommendations of the workshop



Ministry of Agriculture, Nature Management and Fisheries Ministry of Foreign

Affairs Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment of the

Netherlands, in cooperation with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the

United Nations (FAO) 





PART ONE: INTRODUCTION 



The International workshop on Agenda 21 - Chapter 10: Integrated Planning and

Management of Land Resources was held in Wageningen, the Netherlands, from 20

- 22 February 1995. The objective of the workshop, for which the initiative

was jointly taken by FAO and the Government of the Netherlands. was 



     (i)  to formulate recommendations and policy options on the

          implementation of Chapter 10 to be submitted to the Commission on

          Sustainable Development (CSD) for consideration at its third

          session in April 1995, and 



     (ii) to exchange knowledge and experience on the planning and

          management of land resources. 



The workshop was attended by more than 80 senior officials from 32 countries

from all regions, 6 intergovernmental organizations and 6 non-governmental

organizations. 



Chapter 10 calls for an integrated approach to the planning and management of

land resources through re-organizing and~ where necessary, strengthening of

decision-making structures, including policies and planning and management

structures. Such an approach recognizes the need for participation of all

stakeholders in land use decision making, and bridges the gap between the

production and income objectives of land users and the long term objective of

preserving natural resources. Chapter 10 has an umbrella function for the

other land-related chapters which deal with forests, mountains,

desertification and sustainable agriculture and rural development as more

specific forms of land use. It has, therefore, many linkages with the other

chapters, but clearly has its own objectives for the integrated process of

planning and management of land resources, as set out in para. 10.5: 



     (i)  to review and develop policies to support the best possible use of

          land and the sustainable management of land resources, by not

          later than 1996; 



     (ii) to improve and strengthen planning, management and evaluation

          systems for land and land resources, by not later than 2000; 



     (iii)to strengthen institutions and coordinating mechanisms for land

          and land resources, by not later than 1998; 



     (iv) to create mechanisms to facilitate the active involvement and

          participation of all concerned, particularly communities and

          people at the local level, in decision making on land use and

          management, by not later than 1996. 



The workshop had selected the following three themes for discussion: 



     (i)  the integration of objectives and policy formulation for planning

          and management of land resources in rural areas, 



     (ii) managing a planning process for the use of land resources in rural

          areas with all stakeholders and



     (iii)possibilities for sustainable economic development in rural areas,

          with emphasis on non-traditional uses of land. 



These were also the subjects of the keynote addresses and of the working

groups and were elaborated on in the Issues-Paper prepared by the Winand

Staring Centre for Ingrated Land, Soil and Water Research in Wageningen. The

workshop took the "meso-level" (intermediate between central government and

local community) as a starting point for analysis of the possibilities of

integration of goals. During the discussions it was recognized that, given the

specific characteristics of regions, a ranking of goals (ecological, economic,

social) has to be made. 



The workshop had before it the Issues-Paper mentioned earlier and the

background paper Planning for Sustainable Use of Land Resources: Towards a New

Approach, prepared by FAO. Furthermore, 31 completed questionnaires on a

specific national case of intermediate-level planning and management of land

resources were returned by participants, of which a summary was presented and

made available to the workshop. These cases showed the progress achieved by

individual countries in the implementation of Chapter 10. The full report of

the workshop will contain an extensive summary of the cases. It is planned to

also prepare a more extensive study on the cases. Both activities can be

regarded as a contribution to the fulfilment of the requirements set forth in

para. 10.12.d. 



The workshop actively discussed, especially in the working groups, many items

relating to the integrated approach to planning and management of land

resources and agreed upon a set of conclusions and recommendations. The

country cases submitted by the participants turned out to be a valuable source

of information for additional recommendations on the implementation of Chapter

10. A number of recommendations are already included in the text of Chapter 10

or other Chapters of the land cluster. The outcome of the discussions

emphasized the importance of many of these recommendations, but these are not

repeated in the present document. The other recommendations that were

formulated by the meeting are either a further specification of existing

points in Chapter 10, or are new and additional points; these are included in

the present document. 



Discussions were held in the spirit of global partnership to conserve, protect

and restore the health and integrity of the Earth's terrestrial ecosystems.

Referring to principle 7 of the Rio declaration it was recognized that States

have common but differentiated responsibilities. The developed countries

acknowledge the responsibility that they bear for the international pursuit of

sustainable development in view of the technologies and financial resources

they command. Concerning the latter aspect reference was also made to Chapter

33, para's 33.13 and 33.14. 



The Government of the Netherlands will present the conclusions and

recommendations of the workshop to the Intercessional Meeting on Sectorial

Subjects in March 1995 and to the third session of the CSD in April 1995, and

will request that this document be considered as an official document for

these meetings. 





PART TWO: RECOMMENDATIONS



The participants of the workshop submit the following recommendations to the

Commission on Sustainable Development.' In this regard they recognize that

recommendations should be tailored to the particular situation within

countries. National integrated land resources planning strategies must

recognise differences relating to:



     - Rural vs. urban needs;



     - Regular vs. emergency situations;



     - Variations in preparedness in terms of the state of development of

     legislation, policies, institutions, concern for biodiversity as against

     other demands on land resources, and public participation in planning

     and decision-making. All countries are committed to the timetable for

     chapter 10 but various constraints mean that some countries will take

     longer to meet the objectives fully and will have to intensify efforts

     to achieve them. 





1. INTEGRATION OF OBJECTIVES AND POLICY FORMULATION FOR LAND USE PLANNING AND

MANAGEMENT OF LAND RESOURCES IN RURAL AREAS.



Under this theme the workshop participants recommend that: 



1.1. Governments develop a framework or guidance to implementing agencies for

integrated land use planning and management including explicit aims and taking

into account what has been achieved so far. 



1.2. Governments review land tenure arrangements or legislation with the

objective of providing long-term security on the land, taking into account the

needs of all stakeholders, especially the farmers and all those that are

effectively involved in the agricultural sector, both men and women. 



1.3. Governments review economic policies and revise economic instruments to

reinforce the positive consequences and decrease the negative consequences of

public and private activities for sustainable management of land resources. 



1.4. To provide the investment in rural areas that is needed to implement

Agenda 21, governments assess and, if necessary, redress the balance of

resource flows between rural and urban areas. 



1.5. For targeting common sustainable development goals and an integrated

approach, governments not only review the mandates of institutions but also

pool budgets of sectors. 



1.6. To cope with emergency situations beyond the normal planning scenario,

governments provide for a rapid alert and response capability. 



1.7. Governments formulate and adopt legal and technical adjustment mechanisms

for the effective promotion of and the support to the stability of

agricultural land use. and for sustaining competition and complementarity, in

economic terms. of agriculture and other forms of land use. 



1.8. Governments design land valuation systems and standards for agriculture

that will quantify the social, economic, environmental and demographic impacts

associated with the transfer of productive arable land to other uses. 



1.9. Governments and international organizations cooperate in identifying

national and international sustained sources of funding to carry out

integrated land use planning and management with full stakeholder

participation. 



1.10. The various forms and degrees of land degradation, their socio-economic

causes and effects, particularly poverty, need to be given prominence in all

programmes for integrated planning and management of land and water resources,

taking into account the linkages with the aims of other relevant Chapters of

Agenda 21, such as 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 and 18. 





2. MANAGING A PLANNING PROCESS FOR THE USE OF LAND RESOURCES OF RURAL AREAS

WITH ALL STAKEHOLDERS 



Under this theme the workshop participants recommend that: 



2.1. Governments promote capacity building, including leadership skills, so

that communities and people's organizations, with special attention to women

and youth, can participate in, or initiate local land use planning. Funding

for upgrading of technical skills and training will be needed 





2.2. Governments focus on financial support for a catalytic approach to start

community participation processes at all levels. This should include capacity

building of grassroots-level and voluntary associations. Financial support can

be more effective if it addresses causes instead of symptoms. 



2.3. Governments incorporate indigenous knowledge and methods of land

resources management into their policies and development programs and assist

people's organizations to do likewise. Research will be needed to uncover this

knowledge and incorporate it into formal databases and planning procedures. 



2.4. Governments develop criteria and performance indicators for sustainable

land use, allowing flexibility for sub-national and local variations. 



2.5. Governments establish and strengthen conflict resolution mechanisms, in

particular at the local level. 



2.6. If land reforms are considered necessary, these should be introduced in a

gradual and progressive manner so as to maintain a minimum support of all

stakeholders. 



2.7. Governments cooperate on funding, training and technical support

involving multilateral, regional, U.N., NG0, farmers' organisations and

bilateral external support agencies. 



2.8. No set planning procedure is applicable in all situations. International

and national organisations should develop modular planning tools so that

specific combinations of modules can be applied to individual situations.

Workshops for land use planning should be conducted to familiarise policy

makers and technical specialists with these new tools. 



2.9. Stakeholders at the meso-level should be informed by their national

authorities about the framework within which they participate in the planning

process and about the extent to which they can influence the framework itself

as well as the outcome of the planning process. 



2.10. Public authorities should enter into partnerships with stakeholders to

produce local plans and action strategies for development, for the security of

individuals, and for the alleviation of poverty; they should provide the link

between broader land use and sectoral planning, bringing together the

resources necessary to achieve optimal results.



2.11. Governments and organizations recognize differences in interests of

stakeholders and their representative NGO's and, in particular, to ensure

incorporation of legitimate concerns and participation by land users including

women. 





3. POSSIBILITIES FOR SUSTAINABLE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN RURAL AREAS. 



Under this theme the workshop participants recommend that: 



3.1. Governments provide a national framework to assess the costs and benefits

of different land use options or developments. 



3.2. For any public intervention or expenditure (a tax, a subsidy, a

regulation, a program of activities, an investment project), governments

select at least one performance indicator and monitor it. 



3.3. Governments follow sound macro-economic and effective poverty reductio

policies as a necessary condition for more sustainable management of land

resources. An enabling legal framework is also required. 



3.4. Governments use economic instruments to express environmental costs and

benefits in market prices, whereby all land resource users will be enabled to

take account of environmental costs and benefits in their decision making. 



3.5. Where environmental costs and benefits cannot be fully captured in taxes.

subsidies or other economic instruments, governments provide incentives for

voluntary action by land resource users, or use regulations to enable land

resource users to take account of environmental costs and benefits in their

decision making, with due consideration for the administrative costs of these

regulations. 



3.6. Economic instruments will be necessary but are, often, insufficient to

promote improved land use. When complementary measures are required, projects

should be designed accordingly, including activities such as formation and

promotion of groups of land users. technology dissemination. field

demonstrations, capacity building of user groups and of government support

services and adaptive research institutions. 



3.7. Where new economic "carriers" are considered necessary for sustainable

development of rural areas. projects should be designed to include activities

such as ecotourism, joint wildlife management with local communities, joint

forest management with local communities, watershed management (with upstream

conservation funded by downstream beneficiaries of more regular flows, reduced

silt load. and improved water quality), and nature reserves and parks (with

employment generated by the policing function). More generally, governments

promote labour-intensive growth throughout the economy, and reverse

discrimination against rural areas in the allocation of public expenditure to

health, education and infrastructure.





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Date last posted: 2 December 1999 13:24:30
Comments and suggestions: DESA/DSD