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Ammon News - Jordan is set to host the Global Land Forum 2022 (GLF) and the first ever Youth GLF in May, with the aim of taking land governance and sustainable land development to the next level.

“We believe equitable land rights are the key to progress on human rights, flourishing and healthy societies, and a sustainable planet,” according to a GLF statement sent to The Jordan Times.

“Land rights are both a fundamental human rights issue and a means for a sustainable and just future, because land connects everything — climate, inequality, democracy, food and human rights,” the GLF said in the statement.

Jordan will be the first Middle Eastern country to host the GLF, which is set to take place between May 21 and 26, 2022.

The first two days of the forum will be dedicated to young people to enable them to build a global network and build an agenda to address the main challenges they face in accessing land and protecting their territories around the world, with a special focus on Jordan.

On May 23, “Jordan Day”, will focus on national and regional land-related issues, followed by the global network day under the theme “pathways to climate solutions”.

The GLF defines land as a finite and essential natural resource: People live on, eat and drink from, grow from and build their future on, in addition to being a source of dignity and empowerment, and a basis for economic and social development, particularly for women.

Furthermore, the GLF said that women’s equal rights would be one of the six main topics for day one, in addition to being the key topic of discussion during the global network days, with several panel discussions on women’s role in climate resilience.

“There will be a field trip dedicated to strategies to support local women’s initiatives around land and water, sustainable tourism for economic growth and the preservation of cultural heritage and natural resources.” according to the GLF.

The forum will also highlight conflicts and human rights violations arising by land disputes, which include the Palestinian case.

The Jordanian government, together with GLF’s National Organising Committee, are working on establishing a National Land Strategy, which will be launched during the forum. The strategy will be implemented through a collective action plan based on partnerships and a multi-stakeholder, the GLF statement said.

“The forum is a key opportunity for Jordan to highlight issues of national priorities, especially that the International Land Coalition (ILC) includes civil society and intergovernmental organisations,” Raed Gharib, CEO of SEEDS Jordan, a nonprofit organisation that invests in the power of young people, to face global challenges, and one of the board members of the ILC, told The Jordan Times on Tuesday.

Commenting on the GLF, Jordanian sociologist Hussein Khozahe told The Jordan Times that “Jordanians have always had a profound connection to land”.

“Jordan being the first country in the region to host such forum, is the best proof of its interest and progress with regard to land issues,” he said.

*jordantimes