Antigua (Guatelama) -  Over 200 leaders from civil society, international institutions and governments will come together in Antigua, Guatemala to explore the concept of territorial governance amidst radical changes that are taking place throughout the developing world and are transforming modes of production, social relationships and the living conditions of millions of smallholder producers and indigenous peoples. In many places, these changes are resulting not only in the physical dispossession of millions land-dependent rural and urban households and increasing land concentration in the hands of a few, but also have a profoundly negative cultural impact on these affected groups.

Guatemala, which is hosting the forum, is recovering from 36-year civil war linked to land rights that ended in 1996. The country remains one of the poorest countries in Latin America, with over half of rural people and nearly two-thirds of indigenous peoples living in poverty. While the Forum is global in nature, it will also provide space for policy dialogue between Guatemalan policymakers and civil society in sharing lessons learned with a wide range of global actors.

The President of Guatemala Otto Perez Molina will deliver the inaugural speech on 23 Apri.

Every two years, ILC organises an international Forum to convene its members and other stakeholders on land to advance understanding of the complex and dynamic political, economic, environmental and societal linkages between land governance, food security, poverty and democracy. ILC’s ultimate objective is to mobilise its members and partners to influence land-related policy practice. In pursuit of this objective, the Coalition facilitates multi-stakeholder processes in the search for people-centred responses to land governance challenges.