Ten years ago, donors from around the world came together to negotiate a first-of-its-kind international agreement to strengthen and secure land rights in the context of food security. This agreement—the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests (VGGT)—was negotiated in a unique, inclusive process by the UN Committee on World Food Security (CFS) that included more than 100 UN member states, 30 civil society organizations, a private sector network, and numerous observers. After two years of intense negotiations, the VGGT was unanimously adopted in 2012.

The arrival of the VGGT was hailed as a watershed moment for the land rights community, and prompted a flurry of activity and funding. Donors allocated billions of dollars to implement the principles enshrined in the VGGTs, across dozens of countries.

Ten years later, we can look back and ask: what have we accomplished; what have we learned; and,  where do we go from here? 

Please join the U.S. Agency for International Development and New America on June 7 at 9 a.m. Eastern for a panel discussion to take stock of a decade of implementing the VGGT, and discuss the future of this landmark agreement. This event is supported by the USAID Integrated Natural Resource Management project.

Agenda:

Opening Remarks:

Yuliya Panfil, Director, Future of Land and Housing Program, New America

Keynote Address:

Adriano Campolina, Senior Policy Officer, UN FAO

Panel Discussion: 

Karol Boudreaux, Senior Land and Resource Governance Advisor, USAID

Michael Taylor, Secretariat Director, International Land Coalition 

Andreas Lange, Senior Adviser for Land Governance, GIZ

Gregory Myers, former Chair of the VGGT Negotiations, independent consultant 

Yuliya Panfil, New America (moderator)