Vanuatu Review of National Land Legislation, Policy and ... - AusAID

Attachment 7The project's overall strategy was to create land use plans that integrate betweenlocal, provincial and national levels and across all sectorsThe National Land Use Plan aimed to integrate a broad set of principles andguidelines, supported by information from the Development Plan, the naturalresources inventory Vanuatu National Resource Inventory (VANRIS), the NationalConservation Strategy, the National Tourism Management Plan, and data collectedby line agencies and other groups such as census data, data relating to agriculture,forestry, geology and mines, rural water supply and cultural heritage.The project established the Vanuatu Land Use Planning Office (VLUPO), to carryout the tasks at national level, and to train staff and co-ordinate planning activities inthe Provinces. At Provincial level, the project assisted in developing ProvincialDevelopment Plans and natural resources management capabilities within the officeof the Provincial Planner. At the community level, the project assisted villagers in theprocess of developing land use plans utilizing a Community Area ResourceManagement Activity (CARMA) "Bridging the Gap".Since the support from AusAID has ceased it would appear that there has beenminimal input to the database, although the system is still operational and land usemaps can be produced through the Information Technology Centre (ITC) underSurveying and Mapping.In the Priorities and Action Agenda for Vanuatu 5 it is quoted that “No land usesystem is in place therefore no mechanism is available for identifying conservationand timber production areas”. It is then indicated that this is leading to land disputesand a stifling of economic development. This highlights the importance ofdeveloping, implementing and maintaining land use plans over all of Vanuatu.In 2000 the Vanuatu Land Use Planning Project developed a Vanuatu National LandUse Planning Policy. This document was intended to:Guide investors seeking to develop land in Vanuatu.Provide guidelines for evaluating development proposals.Assist with the development of land use policy and land use plans.It is unclear as to whether this document has been official adopted by theGovernment, however it would appear that this document is not being followed andused for the implementation of land use policy. It is known that the Shefa Land UseGuide was derived from the National Land Use Policy 6 . However there is littleindication of its use in any other area.5 ibid p 286 Shefa REDI Five Year Economic Development Plan 2003-2007, p 46