Structure & Trategy Team

United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development 5 – 16 May 2008, New York, USA

The 16th Session of the CSD is due to be held in New York. The session will address topical developmental issues where stakeholders in governments’ and civil society circles to reiterate their commitment to develop and implement strategies for sustainable development. It is expected that various government agencies and accredited non-governmental organizations will make key presentations and recommendations for policy formulations in the respective thematic areas which, for this year, include Agriculture, Rural development, Land, Drought, Desertification, and Africa. WEP will actively participate in the CSD-16 as one of the major group organizations that are in special consultative status with the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). WEP is currently one of the key partners for the coordination and facilitation of the Women’s Major Groups for CSD-16.

The CSD Secretariat has approved WEP's request for a side event at the CSD-16. The joint organisers for the event are WEP and Global Land Tool Network (GLTN).

Title: Land for Sustainable Urbanisation

Date & Time Slot : Friday, 9 May 1:15-2:45pm

Venue: Conference Room B

Regional Consultative Workshop on Land Policy in West Africa 15 – 18 April 2008, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

Given WEP’s role in addressing land related challenges, the Organisation been invited to a high level regional workshop for the West African region to be held in Ouagadougou Burkina Faso, and organize by the consortium (AUC- ECA- AfDB) in collaboration with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the Comite` Permanent Inter-Etats de Lutte contre la Secheresse dans le sahel (CILSS), the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).

The workshop will bring together a wide range of stakeholders on land issues in the region, including national governments, civil society, private sector, centres of excellence and development partners. A regional discussion paper (Draft Report of the Regional Assessment on Land Policy in West Africa), based on the assessment of key land issues West Africa will form the basis for the discussion. The workshop will aim to reach a consensus on:

.The regional specificities, initiatives and lessons that should be included in the continental framework;
The knowledge, institutional and resource gaps as well as lessons from on-going land policy development processes and initiatives in the region, critical to identifying capacity needs and developing strategies for implementation.
The main inputs that should be considered in finalising the Report of the Regional Assessment on Land Policy in West Africa.

The tripartite consortium of the African Union Commission (AUC), the United Nations Economic Commission for African Development Bank (AfDB) in collaboration with Regional Economic Communities (RECs) are in the process of developing a framework and guidelines foe land policy in Africa with a view to assisting African member states catalyses land policy formulation and implementation. The framework will be supported by benchmarks and indicators for monitoring the performance of land policy formulation and implementation processes at national, regional and continental levels. An important part of this process is the multi-stakeholder consultations aimed at gaining consensus on the key elements that should constitute the framework and guidelines.

(a) Promoting Gender Mainstreaming in Governance through Civic Education and Electoral Process in the Build up to 2011 Elections
Project Location: North East Region of Nigeria (Taraba and Yobe States)
Donor: Delegation of the European Commission to Nigeria
Duration: 12 months

(b) Promoting Community Participation in Sustainable Settlements Development in the FCT
Project Location: Old Karu, Lugbe, Sabon Lugbe, Gosa, Sauka, Mpape and Dutse-Alhaji communities in Nigeia's Federal Capital
Donor: Misereor
Duration: 24 months