Questions/Answers

From landless people’s demands and a forest invasion problem in Lann Sak district, Uthai Thani province (in Central Thailand), Agricultural Land Reform Office (ALRO) conveyed land (3,230 rai) allowed the Forest Industry Organization (FIO) to lease for growing Eucalyptus and ran out of contract to fulfill the demands. ALRO set layouts to eight communities (8C) divided into two target groups in a total of 369 individuals. The first group was for five communities with land allocated to landless people in Lann Sak sub-district area. The second group was for three communities with land allocated to people without land utilization document in Huai Khot Park and Thung Faek area. The objective is to allocate land for the poors to reduce inequality in society and solve poverty by distributing public land to people using a land management system. The land was allocated at maximum to 5 rai for settlement 0.375 rai and agriculture 4.625 rai. The land rights were not given to a single individual but were granted to cooperatives management, which let people supervise their land and install all-new public utility such as electrical systems, waterworks, road, water wells and land development for cultivation. This project regulated the prohibition of purchasing or trading which gave benefits to stabilize household possessory rights in the long run because it could be passed as a legacy, strengthen united groups, reduce conflict in communities, solve poverty, alter mindset, open self-improving opportunities to learn new skills to improve lifestyle and reduce conflict between state authorities and people invading forest land, and establish more trust in the government.

The category on promoting integrated mechanisms for sustainable development: This project emphasizes sustainable management for society, economy, and environment. This project becomes a model for other communities in public land allocation and management. The project is integrated jointly by the government, private sector, civil society and NGO, focusing on sustainable operations by dividing the roles and responsibilities in accordance with the main mission or expertise of each organization. The project has a mechanism of cooperatives to manage the land with committees, members, and representatives from various sectors to work together emphasizing the sustainable development of the community.

Goal 1: No Poverty Sub-goal 1.4 This project helps the poor and fragile people access to land and habitation, as well as assist in habitation building factor and fund accessibility such as cooperative fund, and other factors such as animal and plant varieties. Goal 2: Zero Hunger This project helps guarantee access to food security emphasizing family production and consumption, as well as integrated farming and organic farming in the project area, and ensuring product availability and incomes. Goal 6: Clean Water and Sanitation This project has a water distribution system with the collaboration of all sections to let water system pass through the people’s area and nearby communities for solving the water shortage in the area and guaranteeing sustainable water supply.

The way to strengthen the sustainable outcome is to improve human resources by creating good values and culture responsibility for the community, giving experience and knowledge, developing filament between alliances and reducing environmental effects such as promoting organic agriculture, pesticide deduction, land modification, and natural resources conservation by cooperative good management and national strategic plans to form the reliability in the project sustainability.

This project can reduce people's inequality in land ownership, especially disadvantaged groups because they lack power and opportunities to access to the essential factors (land and habitation) because of the high price. They can only be a tenant and cannot secure their habitation due to debt repayment. Only a few departments work on this problem. This project then change the way to work by collaboratively procuring land, screening disadvantaged, developing the basic structure, supporting manufacturing factors and knowledge for the disadvantaged groups, and rendering spatial integration effectively by all departments.

This project focuses on solving the disadvantaged groups and the poors in society, consisting of women groups (60.71% of land receivers of this project). The Women groups in Thailand mostly lack opportunities to access land resources due to poor education. Some families still believe that their daughters cannot inherit family's land; the daughters have to be dependent on their husbands. This project then incurs equality between genders in land-based resource access.

Therefore, this project grants an opportunity to the disadvantaged groups, consisting of women, poor people, elderly people (aged 50-80 yrs.) (59.4% of land receivers of this project), and uneducated people (84.7% in elementary level). These groups will have an opportunity to access land and certain habitation, gain knowledge and income, build self-confidence, self-reliance, and gain acceptance by society and life-stability. They will restore the viewpoint of themselves to feel valued and believe that they can rely on themselves, make use of their land efficiently without forsaking it, and continue to improve the land for stable income and for being their children’s heritage.

2015 - 2016: The project started with the landless and poor people’s demands in land. The land was vacant, decayed, and needed to be maintained during the first period. ALRO was to prepare land for being allocated and to develop infrastructure and public utility. The water system would be laid down while premise and electrical installation would be initiated. However, there were an unready public utility, especially electricity used in water pumping, and the lack of knowledge and funds for investment. Collaboration in the community was weak and had attitude conflicts, leading to procedures of the next phase. 2017 - 2018: The sub-committees were established for easier management in each community. The collaboration was increased but not strong enough because of lacking in leaders. The basic structure system was almost completed but there was still a problem of drinking water supplies. Additionally, the people still lack understanding about choosing occupations and suitable skills. ALRO and other government agencies constructed additional water sources. The people gain funds for housing; they get a loan from cooperatives. The group’s members had opportunities for career development training. The private sectors provided marketing support.; however, they still had problems with product management. 2019 - Present: The people have adapted themselves to learn how to manage for the land, resulting in existence of leaders. The group has extended the knowledge of sustainable agriculture and market management. However, some people still did not adjust themselves due to the problem of labor and readiness. The people learnt and aggregated with the believe of protecting and using land sustainably, as well as extending to community land allocation policy using the method of this project.

A lack of basic infrastructure such roads, water and electricity supply make it difficult for poor people living in the first period. After the previous problems, ALRO built the road and irrigation system to direct water from the original source of supply (Thap Salao Reservoir). Moreover, other organizations have supported various fundamentals and knowledge. Each field officer has contributed to their own training schedule based on the needs of the people and the co-operative provided financial support for them. They have been developed the knowledge, attitude and practice to make them better.

This project is one of the complete and sustainable state land management models. Originally, lands were allocated to farmers individually causing the capitalist problem; therefore, this project is used as the model in collective farm of ownership allocation. Farmers in community manage land together with the regulation of cooperatives. This project is the innovation of sustainable land management that develops land, people, and career, as well as shifts the power in land management from government regulation to stakeholder engagement. The citizens’ demands and problems turned into the government’s regulations.

This project drew inspiration from Sufficiency Economy Settlement Project of ALRO in 2006. This project allocated the land for the poors and people who graduate in agriculture. The land rights were not granted to cooperatives management but were given to a single individual. The land allocation at maximum to 2.5 rai per person for integrated farming purpose is bound to be adequate for living. Therefor, Land Allocation for Communities in Rabam Sub-district, Lann Sak District, Uthai Thani Province project is designed by adaptation this project and developing a best practice around project management.

This project has never been nominated for any awards; however, it was used as a model and adapted to other state lands called “Policy of Arable Land Allocation to Reduce Government’s Inequality”. In 2017, 17 areas of State lands in 5 provinces (10 cooperatives) illegally possessed were expropriated: 2 areas of Nakhon Ratchasima (in Northeast), 3 areas of Kanchanaburi (in Central), 2 areas of Chonburi (in Central), 10 areas of Sa Kaeow (in East), and 1 area of Surat Thani (in South). The expropriation will be further implemented in other 7 provinces in 2020: Chiang Mai (in North), Kamphaeng Phet (in North), Chiang Rai (in North), Udon Thani (in Northeast), Ratchaburi (in Central), Songkhla (in South), and Krabi (in South).

The project may extend, expand and transfer knowledge to other countries that transferability of land is limited by centralized for recognizing individual or community-level land rights. They can adapt designing and implementing programs of decentralization of land reform administration to accelerate the transfer of decision- making powers from the central government to local institutions with the aim of enhancing efficiency, equity and justice in the management and use of land to support community empowerment and sustainable land management.

This project is the model of integrated cooperation among government, people, state enterprises, private sectors, and NGOs. The departments under the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives deal with water supply, cooperative system, land development system, occupation support, integrated farming promotion, and land allocation. Additionally, the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security assists dwelling establishment. State enterprise organizations give financial supports in the electrical budget. NGOs and private sectors support marketing knowledge, and deal with contact farming. The people engage in defining rules.

The key factors of sustainability are the cooperation within the ministry, among the ministries, within the connection of local level and provincial level, including the correlation with national policies. These features lead to the revision of laws getting a conflict with the goals of the 20-Year National Strategic Plan. All aspects of resources such as budget, knowledge, human, and land were mobilized. Institutional administration makes this project more sustainable than government policies. This project also simultaneously increases the decentralization of power to citizens. This project is the model to develop people while developing sustainable areas based on sufficiency economy.

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This project was evaluated internally by Research and Planning Sub-bureau of ALRO, and externally by the Office of Natural Resources and Environmental Policy and Planning and The Office of Natural Resources and Environment Policy and Planning (ONEP).

CIPP Model has been used as an evaluation tool. Its basic components are Context Evaluation, Input Evaluation, Process Evaluation, Product Evaluation, as well as Output, Effect, and Project Sustainability Evaluation. Moreover, the Electronic Monitoring and Evaluation System of National Strategy and Country Reform (eMENSCR) has been used for land and soil administration. Statistical data in eMENSCR, using table and information patterns, can be accessed via an internet network.

Main findings of the evaluation are used as the framework of the procedure and drawback improvement such as requesting funds from the Agricultural Land Reform Fund for the reconstruction of roads and water system, allocating water resource for cultivation, setting farmer models and leaders, aligning the employment according to farmer’s ability and market’s demand, and adapting the project implementation for other areas e.g. land preparation, land feature consideration, relevant laws, and preparation costs.

Although this project is setting the methods of land allocation according to National law, the effective mechanism driving this initiative is the operation under cooperatives. The institutions consist of the cooperative committees and members who are responsible for land allocation. Previously, it was the association of farmers requesting allocated lands, then, that association was developed for an economic purpose, career development, and administration. The representatives from eight communities were appointed to the cooperative committees in order to contrive rules that support the occupation and the public resources utilization e.g. electricity, roads, pipeline system, and land for the common use. The committees derived from members were selected according to the various characters and mindset for the reason that the operation could be on accurate decision-making and meet with the population’s demand. The committees play a key role in land administration and member supervision such as inspecting land utilization, nominating violative members to leave the land parcel, proposing the marketing plan for generating incomes, providing members’ welfare, and protecting the natural environment. In this regard, the government and other sectors support the cooperatives’ works by training members’ careers, supporting production inputs and budget, as well as promoting land institutions and water administration.

The operation of this project emphasizes all stakeholder collaboration at the beginning of the land settlement process. The people sectors take part in designing and calling on the government to initiate land allocation, regulates land utilization, and prohibits state land selling. The government is responsible for land allocation, including occupation and infrastructure development such as the construction of roads and land leveling supports, irrigation system improvement, revenue promotion, knowledge and production inputs contribution. Public organizations provide funds for dwelling. State enterprises expand electricity areas. The private sectors promote marketing knowledge such as Chul Thai Silk CO.,LTD (mulberry and silk farming). The cooperatives networks provide production inputs and areas for product selling. NGOs such as Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and Huai Kha Khaeng Uthaithani Foundation provide budgets for intruders who invaded the forested watershed and left there for legally farming. All sectors engage in this project to achieve the goal of reducing poverty and to emphasize sustainable development in the aspect of citizens, economy, and environment, by promoting people’s living standards, reserving natural resources, forming groups, and reducing conflicts between government and people sectors.

The project highlights the importance of strong local institutions and community-based organizations in land resources management for reducing poverty and enhancing socioeconomic and livelihood in terms of productivity, income, security of tenure and so forth. The project was integrated with Governments and project partners, that aimed at developing capacities at all levels for a transition towards sustainable land management. Constraints and barriers to this model adoption were brought to the attention of policy makers from local to district and national levels through stakeholder dialogues, technical studies and project steering committees and solutions were explored through training, knowledge sharing and the identification of potential payments for sustainable land management for subsequent scaling up through district plans and budgets and follow up investment programmes that support national policy, such as the Arable Land Allocation to Reduce Government’s Inequality to provide better livelihoods for Thai people. The government empowers people to take part in public resource administration with an integrative manner and emphasizes equality of land distribution. This project demonstrates the win-win-win (local, national and global; economic, social and environmental) benefits of working at the landscape level with concerned technical sectors and stakeholders, from land users to service providers to local policy makers.