Land is life CHIPATA DISTRICT LAND ALLIANCE Clarifying Land Rights in Eastern Zambia OUR VISION The Chipata District Land Alliance (CDLA) is a civil society organization that WE ARE WORKING focuses on advancing social and economic development by documenting TOWARDS A SOCIETY the land rights of citizens in the Eastern Province of Zambia. Since 2014, WHERE EVERYONE, with support from the United States Agency for International Development ESPECIALLY WOMEN (USAID), CDLA has partnered with six customary chiefs to pioneer low- AND YOUTH, CAN cost, participatory methods of land documentation using mobile approaches ENJOY AND HAVE to secure tenure, known as MAST. The organization uses data to improve ACCESS TO THE dialogue and promote transparency and accountability in land use planning. OWNERSHIP OF LAND. MAIN ACTIVITIES • Customary land documentation • Land adminstration • Local area planning • Conflict resolution • Advocacy for sustainable land use • Women’s empowerment • Links to agrofinancing THE REACH OF CDLA OUR EASTERN ACHIEVEMENTS PROVINCE Parcels documented MAMBWE 12,600+ CHIPANGALI KASENENGWA Hectares mapped CHIPATA 32,000+ ZAMBIA VUBWI Lusaka CHADIZA Women with KATETE registered rights 21,000+ Villages supported 700+ Since 2014, CDLA has registered land rights for more than 40,000 people LONG TERM IMPACTS Land documentation secures CDLA employs a gender-inclusive rights for children and extended approach that promotes women’s family members for the purpose leadership in village land committees of inheriting land and creates and looks to ensure that women PROTECTING opportunities for women and EMPOWERING register their land rights in systems that HOUSEHOLDS youth to assert their rights to WOMEN have traditionally been male dominated. land and household decisions. Land documentation allows Three CDLA-partner chiefs have chiefs to improve planning been elected to the national House and coordinate with district of Chiefs, where they sit on the land IMPROVING government over service delivery. subcommittee, influence Zambia’s IMPACTING LAND USE AND CDLA backstops inventories National Land Policy, and are national PUBLIC POLICY PLANNING of government and community advocates for the benefits of infrastructure. documenting customary land rights. “Land is the bottleneck and the “With USAID support, the CDLA barrier that we could never get has become a trusted interme- past. Everyone wants more, so diary between communities and they take advantage of the widows district government. Our maps and make claims. Prior to CDLA’s are helping the chiefs and gover- arrival, each week, dozens of hou- nment agree on district develop- seholds lined up seeking resolution ment priorities for specific loca- to conflicts over field boundaries. Now there is peace in tions and ensure that the rights of existing landholders the chiefdom.” are considered.” Chieftainess Mkanda, Chipata District, Zambia. Adam Ngoma, CDLA Coordinator With USAID support, CDLA has brought together chiefs and district government to resolve long-standing tensions over boundaries using participatory mapping approaches. Chipata District Land Alliance Plot 1431, Napsa Building Umodzi Highway PO Box 510841 +260 963 152 226 [email protected].