Arab Land Initiative
Good land governance, functioning land administration, and protection of housing, land and property rights are critical for the social, economic, and environmental sustainability of the Arab region and for the realisation of the human rights of all women, men, and children.
The Arab Land Initiative was established in 2016 to catalyse such positive changes. Under the leadership of UN-Habitat and the Global Land Tool Network, the Initiative empowers regional land champions through coordination, collaboration, capacity, knowledge, and information sharing.
30 October 2023
Arab Land Initiative: renewal of the partnership among UN-Habitat, GLTN and BMZ
23 October 2023
Multi-Stakeholder HLP Pledge at the Global Refugee Forum
21 September 2023
FIG Working Week 2024 - Call for Papers
Publications
Events
Workshop on the Application of Fit-For-Purpose Land Administration in the Arab Region
World Bank Land Conference 2024! Call for papers
HLP Rights as Proactive Protection: Custom, Climate and Community
9th GLTN Partners Meeting
The Second Arab Land Conference
Training - Safeguarding the HLP rights of Syrian refugees using STDM
Workshop - Safeguarding the HLP rights of Syrian refugees using STDM
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Share with the Arab Land Initiative documents, publications and other information that can be show-cased here. Write to unhabitat-arablandinitiative@un.org
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Share with the Arab Land Initiative documents, publications and other information that can be show-cased here. Write to unhabitat-arablandinitiative@un.org
The island country of Comoros, or Union of Comoros, is located in the Indian Ocean at the northern end of the Mozambique Channel, off the eastern coast of Africa. Comoros has maritime borders with Tanzania, Mozambique, Madagascar, Seychelles and Mayotte (administered by France). [6] These volcanic islands form an archipelago of just over two thousand square kilometers [5] with a population of less than a million, 30 percent of which live in urban centres. The capital and largest city is Moroni on Grande Comore Island, while Anjouan Island is the most densely populated [10].
Djibouti has an are area of 23,200 km² and is home to one million people. Around 78 percent of the population lives in urban areas, with the major concentration found in Djibouti city and other nearby urban and peri-urban areas. The remaining quarter of the population lives in rural areas and it is mostly devoted to the traditional transhumant pastoralist lifestyle.[1] Traditionally, the Afar and Issa communities are camels, goats, and sheep herders. The Afar people, primarily residing in Djibouti’s northern region, are part of a larger Afar ethnic group predominantly found in Ethiopia, while the Issa people, concentrated in the southern part of Djibouti, share ethnic ties with neighbouring Somalia.[1] Power sharing struggles between the Issas and Afars led to a civil war that ravaged
Egypt is in the northeastern corner of Africa, with the Nile River valley and delta at the heart of the country, Egypt was one of the principal civilizations of the ancient Middle East.
Urbanization is a key driver of development in Egypt, 75 per cent of the GDP is generated in urban areas and 80 per cent of the jobs are in existing cities (NUP Diagnostic report, Unpublished). Urbanization in Egypt increased from 26 per cent in 1937 to 38 per cent in 1960 and 44 per cent in 1986. This percentage fell to around 42.2 per cent in 2017, not because the Egyptian urbanization rate is declining, but rather due to the lack of a clear unified definition of urban-rural areas. In 2021, 43 per cent of Egypt’s total population lived in urban areas and cities.
Iraq is one of the easternmost countries of the Arab Region. It is bordered to the north by Turkey, to the east by Iran, to the west by Syria and Jordan, and to the south by Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.
Iraq has a unique history as a “powerful engine of regional economic growth and trade, and a global beacon of culture and learning” (Common Country Assessment 2009). In more recent decades, it has endured two successive Gulf wars, economic sanctions, a military intervention and internal conflicts. Political instability, the centralized nature of governance mechanisms, an imbalanced allocation of resources and a lack of investment in infrastructure, environment and social services have impacted on the country’s ability to develop its economy and support the needs of the population (United Nations
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Share with the Arab Land Initiative documents, publications and other information that can be show-cased here. Write to unhabitat-arablandinitiative@un.org
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Share with the Arab Land Initiative documents, publications and other information that can be show-cased here. Write to unhabitat-arablandinitiative@un.org
89 percent of the 6 million inhabitants live in urban centres, mostly along the coast. 6 percent of its 10,230 Kms surface is built-up, 32 percent is agricultural, and the remain parts are covered by grass, shrubs, rocks or forest.
Traditionally considered a middle-income country, Lebanon’s economy has been declining due to the combined effects of regional conflicts, COVID-19 pandemic, and the Beirut port explosion.
Lebanon hosts more than one million Syrian refugees scattered throughout urban and rural communities, putting additional strain on the already impoverished host communities and adding to the demand for affordable housing and basic services.
The country extends over 1,759,540 km2 where more than 90% of the total land area is desert or semi-desert. Combined with the projected increase in population, this will result in a number of major challenges in the country including the provision of adequate housing, food, clean drinking water, job opportunities, health care, education, and transportation.
This page will host land-related information on Mauritania.
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Share with the Arab Land Initiative documents, publications and other information that can be show-cased here. Write to unhabitat-arablandinitiative@un.org
Page under construction!
Share with the Arab Land Initiative documents, publications and other information that can be show-cased here. Write to unhabitat-arablandinitiative@un.org
Page under construction!
Share with the Arab Land Initiative documents, publications and other information that can be show-cased here. Write to unhabitat-arablandinitiative@un.org
The spatial and administrative division inside the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem and between the West Bank and Gaza Strip is considered the greatest challenge facing the Palestinian cities and communities(UN-Habitat (2017) Profile for the State of Palestine.). The Palestinian agricultural sector plays a key role for the country’s economic growth, as well as enabler of social development and environmental sustainability. However, Israel’s restrictions on economic and productive activities, including restrictions on the movement of people and goods, and lack of access to land, water and other natural resources severely impair the Palestinian economy and its potential for growth(FAO (2019) Context analysis for the country programming framework for Palestine 2018-2022. ).
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Share with the Arab Land Initiative documents, publications and other information that can be show-cased here. Write to unhabitat-arablandinitiative@un.org
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Share with the Arab Land Initiative documents, publications and other information that can be show-cased here. Write to unhabitat-arablandinitiative@un.org
A repository of publications, research papers, articles, and links to relevant events by the Arab Land Initiative’s partners enriches the shared knowledge. Nine newly released documents on Somalia are now ready for download!
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Share with the Arab Land Initiative documents, publications and other information that can be show-cased here. Write to unhabitat-arablandinitiative@un.org
Officially known as the Syrian Arab Republic, Syria is inhabited by over 18 million people and it borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east and southeast, Jordan to the south, and Palestine and Lebanon to the southwest. Syria’s 185,180 square kilometers.
Tunisia is a part of the Maghreb region of North Africa, bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the east and north. It contains the eastern end of the Atlas Mountains and the northern reaches of the Sahara Desert, with much of its remaining territory being arable land. Most of the southern part of the country is a sandy desert, where wadis are dry for most of the year and fresh water is scarce. Tunisia also has several islands, the Djerba Island in the Gulf of Gabès being North Africa's largest island.
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Share with the Arab Land Initiative documents, publications and other information that can be show-cased here. Write to unhabitat-arablandinitiative@un.org
Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in Western Asia, situated in the southwestern corner of the Arabian Peninsula. It borders Saudi Arabia to the north, Oman to the northeast and it shares maritime borders with Eritrea, Djibouti, and Somalia.
The Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (German: Bundesministerium für wirtschaftliche Zusammenarbeit und Entwicklung), abbreviated BMZ, is a cabinet-level ministry of the Federal Republic of Germany. Its main office is at the former German Chancellery in Bonn with a second major office at the Europahaus in Berlin. Founded in 1961, the Ministry works to encourage economic development within Germany and in other countries through international cooperation and partnerships.
University of the West of England (UWE Bristol) is a modern and dynamic Post 1992 UK University welcoming students from 140 countries. With over 30,000 students and 3,200 staff it is one of the largest and most popular universities in the UK and is currently ranked 2nd in England for Student Experience. Our Purpose is to solve future challenges through outstanding learning, research and a culture of enterprise. We aim to create opportunities for all to thrive and flourish.
The twinning arrangement’s objective between the University of West of England (public research university founded in 1992) and the Birzeit University (educational institution founded in 1972 offering a wide range of academic programs and professional development opportunities) is to address the capacity building aspects of institutional capacity in the sector as well as to ensure that the wider benefits of land governance for all citizens are promoted, thereby encouraging women to be active in the sector and be aware and claim their land rights. The cooperation will draw on diagnostic tools developed by UWE to critically assess sector needs at undergraduate, postgraduate and professional levels, focusing on supporting good land governance and existing Palestinian Land Institutions.
The Urban Training Institute (UTI) is a quasi-private organisation affiliated to the Housing and Building National Research Centre- (HBRC), an Egyptian national government research institution.
UTI seeks to strengthen institutional and human resources capacities that can nurture the improvement of the living and environmental conditions of cities in Egypt and the Middle East.
UTI is a training and capacity building institution specialized in post-graduate and tailor-made training, policy research and technical advisory services. It focuses on urban management & planning, housing & real estate development policies, informal settlements upgrading and urban renewal, urban environmental planning & management, urban infrastructure project management and urban finance. UTI provides tailor-made and specialized training to professionals, technical cadre and policy makers working in central and local government agencies, NGO’s, private sector and educational institutions.
After the 2006 July War, the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) initiated its Country Programme in Lebanon, responding to emerging issues through housing reconstruction, shelter provision and upgrading basic services, while laying the foundation for long-term sustainable solutions by means of urban profiling, data collection and urban policy analyses.
UN-Habitat Lebanon has been working effectively with partners and urban planning actors at the community, national and international levels for the past 15 years to develop and implement programmes and interventions that contribute to the achievement of the targets of Goal 11 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – making cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.