Land and Conflict: A Handbook for Humanitarians

The 2005 Humanitarian Response Review identified land as a critical gap in international response capacity. This Handbook has been prepared by UN-HABITAT at the request of the Early Recovery Cluster to provide simple and clear guidance for addressing land issues in a post-conflict environment. Part of the challenge is the considerable gap that exists between humanitarian and development actors when it comes to land issues. UN-HABITAT’s strategy for addressing this gap is to involve both humanitarians and land professionals in the development of a series of policy and operational tools, including:

(i) Handbook, which targets humanitarians with specific guidance on critical emergency response areas, including simple “Do’s and Don’ts”; (ii) Guidelines, offering more in-depth programming and operational guidance targeting land professionals; (iii) Training Materials and outreach for different target audiences based on needs assessments and information contained in the Handbook and Guidelines; (iv) Technical Advice, through a network of professionals and networks, to countries requesting assistance. (v) Monitoring and Evaluation of land-related interventions to support advocacy objectives and improved programme design and implementation; (vi) Advocacy, to continue to raise awareness of the need to address land issues early and effectively and the contribution of land interventions to wider humanitarian, livelihoods, and state- and peace-building objectives.

Includes a chapter on urban settlements.