When Raising the Flag Stops the Harvest: The Human Cost of Land Disputes
In rural Sierra Leone, land is more than property—it is the foundation of food security, livelihoods, and community stability.
By Samira Ayari
LAND FOR LIFE
LAND FOR LIFE INITIATIVE
The Challenge
Who decides about the access to land, about ownership and use rights? In many countries the answers to these questions are complex. Land titles are often not documented, while different legal regulations and governing structures exist simultaneously.
The Approach
Land governance challenges cannot be resolved by one actor alone. Any solution must take the interests of communities, traditional authorities, representatives of governments and other stakeholders into account. Together with partners we aim to provide a sustainable way forward.
The Initiative
We work with partners mainly in Ethiopia, Burkina Faso, Liberia, Sierra Leone. Jointly we address land governance challenges. We are bringing the civil society, governmental actors, researchers and the private sector together to identify solutions.
“We respect the views of the high-profile personalities already consulted, but we also want the proposed laws to represent the views and aspirations of the affected land-owners, users, women, youth and people with disabilities who are in the majority.”
Land for Life Consortium, Policy Brief, February 2020
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“There is not one tract of land that does not have a claim to it.”
FAO Land Tenure Officer, Sierra Leone
The Initiative
We work with partners in Ethiopia, Burkina Faso, Liberia, Sierra Leone. We are bringing the civil society, governmental actors, researchers and the private sector together to identify solutions on land governance challenges.
The Team
We are driven by our passion for land rights. Meet the team from Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Liberia, Sierra Leone and the international programme support.
“If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together.”
African Proverb
Fact sheet Land for Life
A compact overview of our work and our partnership.
Background
Approach
Activities
Partners
Contacts
Stories & News
Land for Life – Highlights 2025
A look back at the highlights, impactful stories, and policy advancements achieved by the Land for Life initiative in
By Samira Ayari
Strengthening Women’s Land and Inheritance Rights in Post-Conflict Sierra Leone: Legal Reforms and Community-Level Action
In the years following Sierra Leone’s civil war, many women, especially widows and displaced survivors, returned home only to
By Samira Ayari
Land for Life at the Conference on Land Policy in Africa 2025
At CLPA 2025, Land for Life launched a policy brief on bringing land back to the agenda and visited
By Samira Ayari
From Silent Fields to Assertive Voices: How Land Rights Awareness Transformed a Community
In Adami Tulu Jido Kombolcha, Ethiopia, local farmers and community members are reclaiming their voices after years of being
By Samira Ayari
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