The Land Tenure and Property Administration Section helps UN-HABITAT set new standards in the development of urban land policy, innovative residential tenures, and affordable land management and administration systems. It also deals with related regulatory and legal issues promoting pro-poor and women’s rights and empowerment. It works closely with the secretariat of the Global Land Tool Network (GLTN).

The objective of GLTN is to contribute to poverty alleviation and the Millennium Development Goals through land reform, improved land management and security of tenure. The Network has developed a global land partnership and its members include international civil society organizations, international finance institutions, international research and training institutions, donors and professional bodies. GLTN takes a more holistic approach to land issues and thrives to support global land coordination in various ways. The Network supports the establishment of a continuum of land rights, rather than a narrow focus on individual land titling, the improvement and development of pro-poor land management, as well as land tenure tools.

The new approach also entails unblocking existing initiatives, helping strengthen existing land networks, assisting in the development of affordable gendered land tools useful to poverty-stricken communities, and spreading knowledge on how to implement security of tenure. The GLTN partners have identified and agreed on 18 key land tools to deal with poverty and land issues across all regions. GLTN considers that lack of tools as well as land governance problems, are some of the main causes of failed implementation at scale of land policies. The GLTN is a demand driven network where many individuals and groups have come together to address this global problem.

For further information, and registration, please visit the GLTN website at http://www.gltn.net. (or http://www.unhabitat.org/gltn)