1. STDM: From Concepts to Implementation Institutional Links Contribution by Tony Burns Land Equity International

2. Topics Importance of STDM ICT and land administration projects Institutional Context Other issues

3. Importance of STDM STDM is important – could facilitate the low cost recording of wide range of rights Crit, ITC, FIG and UN-Habitat and others involved in STDM are to be commended Statement of objectives could be bolder: “STDM will provide the ability to both register existing rights in the formal system and record other rights in a way that will support the development of improved policy and legal frameworks and the enhanced institutional and administrative arrangements that implement the frameworks.” But to do this need to understand institutional context

4. ICT and Land Administration Projects ICT is a tool not a silver bullet All LA projects need clear understanding of context (policy, legislation, institutions), objectives, outcomes Need clear definition of process (stakeholders, roles/responsibilities, work/flow) ICT is important tool – transparency, efficiency, effectiveness

5. ICT and Land Administration Projects Project based vrs off-the-shelf Philippines – project based software Indonesia – LOC Responses: – Open-source – Off-the-shelf more flexible

6. Institutional Context Key question – how is an STDM installation to be established and maintained – should nominate preferred option Relationship to formal system Relationship to other data sets (personal identification, house number etc) Participation and community oversight are critical elements in the traditional land administration projects – not clear that this is built into STDM pilot

7. Systematic Registration Process An initial planning stage that involves data gathering, preliminary consultation with local authorities, base surveying and mapping if necessary, and staff/contractor recruitment and training; Confirmation of area for systematic registration (typically by identifying administrative boundaries (such as village boundaries) and identifying public land and other land such as communal land that is not suitable for systematic registration); Community consultation program, conducted at various levels, but focussed on informing land holders of the program, the benefits of participation and what is required of them to participate; Demarcation of property boundaries; Collection of information on rights and supporting evidence of these rights; Survey of property boundaries; Adjudication of rights and preparation of information (maps, lists etc) that set out the results of the adjudication; The public display of the results of the adjudication and the processing of any disputes that arise; The preparation of the information for registration of the information and the registration itself.

8. Institutional Context STDM covers many of these steps, but design in December 2008 misses: – Confirmation of area – Adjudication – Public display Adjudication understandable – to some extent – but STDM should gather supporting evidence Confirmation of area for survey will be important in Ethiopia Public display will build confidence and perhaps validate data Update important issue – historical claims register or system to record rights and changes in rights over time

10. Other Issues What rights are to be recognized? STDM design list a comprehensive list of potential rights, but not all apply Better to either: – Develop a country specific typology of tenures – Adopt a rights based topology

11. Rights Based Topology OwnerProprietor Authorized Claimant Authorized User Authorized Entrant AccessXXXXX WithdrawalXXXX ManagementXXX ExclusionXX AlienationX With the five property rights defined as: AccessThe right to enter a defined physical area and enjoy non-destructive benefits WithdrawalThe right to obtain resource units or products (e.g. catch fish, divert water, etc) ManagementThe right to regulate internal use patterns and make improvements ExclusionThe right to determine who will have access rights AlienationThe right to sell or lease management and exclusion rights Source: (Ostrom 2001:135)

12. Other Issues Reversible to paper-based system is important and is more than back-up Strategy should support paper-based recording from a STDM database This will involve: – Hard-copy of versioned object table in form that can be manually updated – Hard copy of other key tables and indices – Ability to input manual data back into STDM

13. Conclusion STDM is important – Good application of ITC/FIG technical skills – Fills a technical gap Prototyping is appropriate Could develop closer link with stakeholders – LA agency, community leaders and community Start thinking about how data will be upodated