Applying Landscape and Sustainable Land Management (L-SLM) for mitigating land degradation and contributing to poverty reduction in rural areas

REC Caucasus starts to implement the project “Applying Landscape and Sustainable Land Management (L-SLM) for mitigating land degradation and contributing to poverty reduction in rural areas”, which is initiated by the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources protection.  The project is financed by the Global Environmental Facility (GEF) and supported by UNEP. The project implementation period is 3 years.

The Project Objective is to support integration of good Landscape and Sustainable Land Management (L-SLM) principles and practices into national policy and institutional framework to ensure adoption of economically viable practices by rural communities.

Project consists of three main components:

1. Policy, regulatory and institutional reforms to mainstream L-SLM practices;
2. Demonstrating benefits of introducing best L-SLM practices in the production system;
3. National capacity development and knowledge Management.

To mainstream L-SLM practices, the national legal and policy framework related to Landscape and Sustainable Land Management (L-SLM) sector will be reviewed and recommendations for harmonizing existing L-SLM framework developed. For successful implementation of the proposed regulations and policy papers the needs assessment will be carried out addressing national institutional framework (including coordination) in Georgia  (inc. MoENRP, MoA, MoRDI, MoESD) and the recommendations will be elaborated for reflection into the relevant regulations.

The project aims to create the web-portal with maps at 1:200,000 scale for whole Territory of Country to serve the governmental entities and other istakeholders with proper information on land degradation and L-SLM.

Demonstrating benefits of introducing best L-SLM practices in the production system is the most exciting part of the project, to show the real practices in life. The practices will be realized in the three selected municipalities (the most vulnerable areas adopted by all stakeholders the project could focused on) Dedoplistskaro, Akhmeta and Gardabani. Elaborating the vulnerability profiles and developing local demonstration plans, recommendation on long-term efforts will be prepared. There will be elaborated a package of L-SLM demonstration activities piloted in agricultural and livestock production areas (up to 6 ha per each pilot site) delivering real social and environmental impacts (e.g. in agro forestry / windbreak management, pasture management, soil protection).

In parallel to the above activities the project will focus on national capacity development and knowledge management together with the Environmental Education Centre under the MoENRP. At least 100 national/sub-national decision makers and local/community representatives will be trained to realize the best L-SLM practices in life.

Outputs

1. Submit for adoption a recommendation kit for legal and policy framework regarding the L-SLM.
2. Report on Needs assessment related to national institutional settlement in Georgia (including coordination), submission of adaptive L-SLM principles.
3. Land degradation web-portal with the maps scaling 1:200 000 for whole territory of Georgia. Its availability for governmental agencies and other stakeholders.
4. Adopted Land Use Plans for three municipalities (Dedoplistskaro, Akhmeta and Gardabani), pilot projects for L-SLM practices in the above municipalities are implemented.
5. National and local decision makers are trained in L-SLM issues.
6. Manual on L-SLM practice knowledge