ACCESS TO LAND BY INDIGENOUS PEOPLES GROUP:
USING ETHNOGRAPHIC METHODS TO INFORM POLICY MAKERS
(IP : 2013 - 2014)

Client and Funding Source: World Bank
Contract Years: 2013-2014
Area of Expertise: Governance

Sample Activities: Policy study and analysis

Land access is a crucial issue that challenges indigenous peoples’ (IP) security with their ancestral territory. This issue heavily influences the economic status of the IPs. The Indigenous Peoples Rights Act (Republic Act No. 8371) provides two instruments – the Certificate of Ancestral Domain Title (CADT) and the Certificate of Ancestral Land Title (CALT) – that recognizes the ownership and rights of IPs over their ancestral domain or land, including the management of natural resources found therein. However, the process of obtaining these instruments has been very slow, entailing years of waiting.

This project will provide an in-depth analysis of the bottlenecks in the CADT/CALT process through two mini-ethnographies in selected IP communities. The analysis will also enhance the understanding of the broader challenges faced by IPs in terms of access to land.

Consultations will be held with the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) and other key stakeholders. The project will provide recommendations on how to address the challenges with ancestral domain claims in the context of the DSWD’s National Community Driven Development Program and through a broader collaboration with NCIP and key line agencies.