BURKINA FASO'S LONG ROAD TO LAND REFORM

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 OUAGADOUGOU 000653

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AF/W FOR EMILY PLUMB
DEPT PASS TO USTR FOR LAURIE ANN AGAMA
MCC FOR DAVID WELD
COMMERCE FOR SALIHA LOUCIF
TREASURY FOR OFFICE OF AFRICAN NATIONS
ACCRA PASS TO USAID AND WATH
DAKAR ALSO FOR FCS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ETRD EAGR ECON EAID EFIN PREL UV
SUBJECT: BURKINA FASO'S LONG ROAD TO LAND REFORM

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1. Key Points:

-- In September 2007, the Government of Burkina Faso (GOBF)
finalized a draft national land reform policy that could eventually
allow citizens in rural areas to obtain clear title to their land
for the first time since Burkina Faso's independence in 1960.

-- In recent months, the GOBF has mounted a nationwide campaign to
gain the support of rural stakeholders for its land reform policy,
which could be adopted by the Council of Ministers by December 2008,
and by the National Assembly in the first half of 2009.

-- Burkina Faso's $480.9 million Millennium Challenge Compact (MCC)
signed in Washington on July 17 contains a $59.9 million land tenure
security project.


2. Key Judgments:

-- Land tenure security, which would increase rural investment and
productivity, is crucial to economic development in Burkina Faso,
where 80 percent of inhabitants rely on subsistence agriculture.

-- Formal landownership will help reduce mounting tensions caused by
the arrival of "outsiders" who are interested in obtaining rural
lands.

-- Land reform would give traditionally excluded groups, such as
women and the rural poor, an opportunity to own land.

End Key Points and Key Judgment

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Background: The Importance of Land in Burkina Faso
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3. Agriculture is the cornerstone of Burkina Faso's economy, and is
dominated by small family farms of three to six hectares. More than
80 percent of the population relies on subsistence agriculture as a
primary source of income.


4. In the central and northern regions of Burkina Faso, soils are
badly degraded and many rural areas are characterized by high
population densities (from 37 persons/sq km to 90 persons/sq km).
The southern, southwestern, and western regions are generally
regarded as the country's breadbasket, and receive large numbers of
migrant farmers and herders. In these areas, land rights and
security of land tenure are particularly important factors
influencing agricultural investment and local production. Land has
also become a source of contention between locals and "newcomers"
(including civil servants, politicians, and businessmen),who have
appeared on the rural scene with a strong interest in acquiring
land.

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History of Land Reform
--------------


5. Since its independence from France in 1960 until the 1984, only
two laws were passed -- in 1960 and 1963 -- regulating private
landholdings. During that time, access to private land titles in
rural areas remained limited; only 19 land titles (less than 140
ha),were granted between 1952 and 1980. In many parts of the
country, land tenure was directed by the local custom of clan
ownership and controlled by male heads of households. This process
traditionally excluded young people, women, and farmers in
impoverished regions, from land ownership.


6. In 1984 a major land reform law, the Agrarian and Land Tenure
Reform (RAF),was passed during the "Burkina Faso Revolution" of
then President Thomas Sankara. Article 1 of the RAF made an
historical break with customary Burkinabe land rights by stating
that "the land belongs to the State." By making all land State
property, the Sankara government hoped to facilitate universal
access to natural resources. In reality, diversity of customs, the
verbal nature of most agreements, and persistence of other
traditional land transactions limited the RAF's effectiveness. In
the long run, this law created a sense of insecurity over land
tenure matters and discouraged economic investment.


7. The 1984 RAF was amended in 1991 and 1996. The 1991 amendment
partially reintroduced the notion of limited private ownership.
While Article 1 of the 1991 law reaffirmed that land constituted

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part of the "National Estate," Article 3 stipulated that "lands
forming part of the National Estate may be assigned as private
property to individuals or legal entities under the conditions set
out by the law. Lands thus assigned cease to be State property.
Nevertheless, the government will control their use." In 1996 the
RAF was once again modified in an attempt to align it with other
laws ratified by the National Assembly, including 1993
decentralization legislation and the 1994 Environmental Code.


8. Because few farmers were aware of the 1991 and 1996 amendments,
this legislation had limited impact on rural land reform. Instead
of facilitating land ownership, these laws made land tenure
management even more complex because it was unclear if customs
authorities or the central government really controlled rural land.
Many experts believed that failure of the 1991 and 1996 amendments
resulted from their top-down origin, which resulted in little
understood laws that ultimately were not accepted by stakeholders.
Burkina Faso's incremental, evolving approach to land tenure created
many misunderstandings among communities and occasionally resulted
in violence and death. As conflicts between farmers and herders
became more commonplace, some critics have voiced concerns over the
viability of western-type tenure security in regions where nomadic
herders and crop-farmers intermingle.

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A New Age of Land Reform
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9. During his six-years in office, former Minister of Agriculture,
Salif Diallo, one of the primary supporters of land tenure, claimed
that land issues in Burkina Faso were more related to distribution
among stakeholders than a shortage of supply. According to Diallo,
who left office earlier this year, the country has nine million ha
of arable soil, but currently exploits only 3.5 million ha. Diallo
believed that in order to setup a consensual land reform system, the
GOBF had to forsake previous top-down reforms in favor of a more
participatory, inclusive process, which would allow all actors more
equitable access to the benefits of landownership.


10. Several regional workshops were held during the two years
required for the GOBF to build a national consensus in support of a
national land reform policy. In May 2007, former Prime Minister
Paramanga Ernest Yonli - currently Burkina Faso's Ambassador to
Washington -- chaired the opening ceremony of a three-day national
forum, which brought together government officials, farmers'
organizations, traditional chieftaincies, village associations,
non-governmental organizations (NGOs),the private sector, and
donors.


11. In September 2007 the GOBF finalized a draft national policy for
rural land reform, the Politique Nationale de Securisation Fonciere
en Milieu Rural (PNSFMR). This policy stated that new land reforms
were necessary to ensure equitable access to land for all rural
stakeholders, preserve investments, and manage potential land
conflicts. In explaining the draft policy, Moumouni Ouedraogo, the
Ministry of Agriculture's Director of Rural Land, described land
reform in Burkina Faso as a two-phase process whose main challenge
was to reconcile legality and legitimacy in a market-based
environment. In the first phase, the Ministry of Agriculture would
draft proposed laws and law-enforcement measures for submittal to
the Government. In the second phase, the Government would examine
and approve the proposals and then send them to the National
Assembly for adoption.


12. The new reform land policy, originally scheduled for a vote
before the National Assembly in March 2008, has been significantly
delayed. Despite the setback, work to gain support for it among
local stakeholders continues. Ouedraogo told us that 17 regional
workshops organized since the adoption of the national land reform
policy were proof that the process is still going well. Ouedraogo
explained that these workshops were crucial in the creation of an
inclusive participatory process, which targeted each of the
country's 13 regions. Workshops actively involved groups
potentially impacted by land reform including: religious and
traditional chieftaincies, women, private stakeholders involved in
agricultural production, and mayors, who would play a major role in
the implementation of new land reform policies. Ouedraogo explained
that remarks made during these meetings were recorded by a pool of
experts who would use them to finalize land-related laws and
law-enforcement measures. He added that he expected these documents
to be presented to the Council of Ministers before December 2008 and
that the National Assembly would review and adopt them in the first

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half of 2009.


13. The National Land Reform Policy in conjunction with pending
land-related legislation will provide a foundation for the MCC Rural
Land Governance Project. This $59.9 million project will increase
investment in land and rural productivity through improved land
tenure security and better land management. Through assistance with
institutional development and capacity building, MCC will enable the
GOBF to establish legal and governmental frameworks that support
long term rural land tenure.

BROWN