From November 10 to 13, 2025, Land for Life partners from Ethiopia, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Burkina Faso took part in the Conference on Land Policy in Africa in Addis Ababa. The conference focused on land governance, justice and reparations. Welthungerhilfe/Land for Life co-organised a pre-event and launched a new policy brief on land reform. Land for Life Ethiopia hosted a field visit to Batu, where colleagues from the other countries could experience the Ethopian land governance context and Land for Life’s work first hand.
“The soil still bleeds, where borders where drawn. (…) May we reclaim our voices…to rebuild what has always been ours. The truth is, we have been here, but this time, may we stay long enough for the land to heal.” The was the powerful opening of Kenyan spoken word artist SCAR, setting the scene for the Conference on Land Policy in Africa (CLPA) 2025 in Addis Ababa, where hundreds of stakeholders discussed land governance, justice and reparations for Africans and descendants of the African diaspora.
The conference highlighted how land questions today are still shaped by colonial histories, weak implementation of existing laws and unequal access to land and resources. Yet the atmosphere was energetic and open. Many speakers underlined the urgency to rethink current approaches, shift power relationships and to work together in new ways.
At CLPA 2025, WHH/Land for Life co-organised a pre-event on strategic partnerships and their role in inclusive land reform. Alongside the pre-event, WHH/Land for Life contributed to a coordination meeting of international development partners and to a networking event where preliminary results of the State of Land Tenure Report (FAO, ILC and CIRAD) were presented, both designed to deepen the dialogue and help move from talking to action.
A pre‑event and the launch of policy brief
Together with the International Land Coalition (ILC), the African Development Bank (AfDB), the African Land Policy Centre (ALPC), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the International Development Law Organization (IDLO), Oxfam International in Africa, and the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO), Welthungerhilfe (WHH) and Land for Life co-organised a full day pre‑event to the CLPA on “Strengthening Partnerships to promote Inclusive Land Reforms and Advance Land Justice & Reparations in Africa”. Around 70 participants from civil society, academia, donors and governments from across Africa took part. On this occasion, Welthungerhilfe published a new policy brief based on experiences from the Land for Life initiative: “Bringing Land Back to the Agenda. Why Land Reform and its Implementation is Vital for Sustainable Development in Africa and Beyond.”
Anna Schreiber, Program Coordinator of the Land for Life Initiative, presented the key messages of the brief in a keynote. Printed copies were shared with participants, and the brief was also taken up in the concluding remarks by Ward Anseeuw, Head of Land Tenure at FAO.
The brief examines progress and remaining gaps in land governance across Africa. It draws on recent legal reforms, multi stakeholder partnerships and insights from Land for Life. It shows how land governance sits at the heart of climate resilience, food security and biodiversity protection, and why shifting power and resources closer to local actors is essential for lasting change. Read the policy brief here.
Dr. Mellese Damtie, chairman of the General Assembly of Land for Life Ethiopia, shared experiences and challenges with land reform in Ethiopia, giving a powerful and account of the successes and gaps regarding land policies in Ethiopia, and why the inclusion of all relevant stakeholder is essential.
From conference hall to community: field visit to Batu
A field visit to a village in Batu was one of the highlights of the week. Land for Life Ethiopia works there with a community whose land is used by a Dutch flower producer. The project provides training on land rights and creates regular dialogue between community members, local authorities and the investor. For partners from Ethiopia, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Burkina Faso, the visit was a chance to see how land governance issues play out in daily life. Community members explained how they now know more about their rights and feel better able to take part in decisions related to their land and livelihoods.
Women from the community played a central role in the exchange. They spoke openly about positive changes and remaining concerns. Partners from other Land for Life countries recognised many of these points from their own contexts. Across the countries, women are still often excluded from formal land governance, and mistrust between communities, authorities and investors can lead to conflict. At the same time, the visit showed how quickly trust and solidarity can grow when women from different places meet, listen and share experiences. It was a woman to woman, village to village exchange. Different countries, different contexts, and yet many of the challenges are similar.
On the drive, the team passed smallholder farms and pastoralists groups and had already some time to exchange on these other burning land issues in Ethiopia. Land Governance systems are often ill fitted for pastoralist lifestyles and conflicts with farmers are common. Yet another small window into Ethiopia’s lived land rights realities.
Key outcomes and the CLPA 2025 Call‑to‑Action
The week in Ethiopia, both at the CLPA and in Batu, underlined how complex and connected land issues are. It also showed how much energy and commitment exists among African partners, governments, traditional authorities, civil society and researchers to address land governance, justice and reparations.
The conference closed with a Call‑to‑Action on “Land Governance, Justice and Reparations for Africans and Descendants of People of the African Diaspora”. Many of its recommendations align closely with Land for Life’s approach: the need for multi stakeholder partnerships, stronger coordination between governments and development partners, the recognition of customary tenure, equal rights for women and youth, and the integration of land governance into wider debates on climate and biodiversity. The Call‑to‑Action also echoes key messages from the Welthungerhilfe/Land for Life policy brief, particularly on shifting power and resources closer to local actors. The full Call‑to‑Action is available here.