In aiming to strengthen legal frameworks in the Republic of Congo and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and empower Indigenous Peoples to protect and manage their forest landscapes, this project assesses legal gaps and supports Indigenous Peoples to document customary land use, strengthen community governance and advocate for reforms in land, resource, climate and biodiversity policy.
Challenges to Indigenous land tenure in the Congo Basin
Indigenous Peoples in the dense tropical forest in Congo and DRC face extreme insecurity of tenure over traditional lands and resources. National laws provide minimal protection to customary rights and prioritise large-scale development.
This affects all traditional communities, but places particular burdens on Indigenous communities and undermine traditional sustainable governance by Indigenous Peoples, leaving them vulnerable to dispossession, and their lands vulnerable to environmental destruction.
Securing Indigenous Peoples’ lands and livelihoods
This project aims to contribute to the development and implementation of community-led, rights-based sustainable land and resource management of the Congo Basin forest. It seeks to integrate the objectives of people, climate and nature effectively and fairly.
The project focuses on embedding Indigenous Peoples’ rights to lands and resources in national law and policy and supporting community-led sustainable management of these lands and resources. This will provide a long-term basis to secure Indigenous Peoples’ livelihoods, invest time and resources in land management, and incentivise local management of land and resources for long-term sustainability.
In addition, recognising and protecting the land rights of Indigenous Peoples’ and supporting the revitalisation of traditional management will reduce potential negative activities such as deforestation.