South America

Knowledge management and learning are at the heart of the LAND-at-scale programme, therefore the knowledge management partners and implementing partners are actively collecting and disseminating lessons learned across the globe.

The Peruvian Amazon region is home to more than 50 indigenous peoples living in almost 2,270 communities. Around 30% of these communities – 680 – still have no collective land titles (government data 3/2020). This legal uncertainty causes disputes over land, exploitation of natural resources and growing pressure on indigenous territories as a result of infrastructure and industry projects and the influx of settlers from other parts of Peru. Over the decade until 2015, virtually no collective land titles were granted to indigenous communities. The reasons include a lack of clarity over responsibilities, inadequate capacity and budget limitations. The governing role for land titling was transferred back to the Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation (MINAGRI) in 2014, but regional government agencies remain in charge of the day to day implementation. Since late 2015, German development cooperation − in coordination with other international actors − has been addressing the need for standardised databases, simpler procedures for granting titles, guidelines on the involvement of indigenous peoples and communities, and dispute resolution strategies, as well as capacity development and adequate budgets.