LAND RESTITUTION IN THE CONTEXT OF PEACE BUILDING
Ivonne Moreno Horta
1. INTRODUCTION AND CONTEXT Conflict territories are often characterized by massive displacement, in 2014, the number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) by armed conflict and violence reached 38.2 million persons worldwide. Internally displaced persons refer to those individuals who had to abandon their land and properties because of conflict but did not cross the border of their home country. This figure of IDPs represented an increase of 15% compared to 2013 and it is the largest number of displaced population since World War II. The vast majority of the world’s IDPs (77%) live in just 10 of the 60 countries monitored for forced displacement (Syria, Colombia, Iraq, Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo, Pakistan, South Sudan, Somalia, Nigeria, and Turkey)1. At the end of 2013, women and children accounted for 70% of IDPs worldwide2. People that have been forced to leave their homes and communities become even more vulnerable due to a lack of access to their land, which leads to the privation of resources for economic sustain. Families disrupted and without access to their source of income become more dependent on humanitarian aid and subsidies to subsist. The livelihoods of nearly 70% of the world’s rural population depend on agriculture and the use of land3 and it is estimated that between 60% to 80% of livelihoods in post-conflict countries depend on agriculture and natural resources4. In addition, displacement by armed conflict and violence can have negative effects on social cohesion by disrupting home communities while creating tensions by adding new members to hosting communities. Thus, in post-conflict situations sound economic growth will be insufficient to prevent the return of violence and instability. Significant social challenges must be addressed, thus the need to further support Governments in its efforts toward peace consolidation, economic recovery, rebuilding communities’ ties and social cohesion.
Event: Land Governance in an Interconnected World_Annual World Bank Conference on Land and Poverty_2018
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