Land Tenure & Disasters

This issue brief is intended to guide efforts to build more resilient communities both pre-disaster and during the different phases of post-disaster programming, including relief, recovery, and reconstruction. Stronger land tenure arrangements mitigate the impact of disasters on communities. This issue brief highlights specific points at which it is crucial to consider land tenure and property rights, including discussions of: a) differences among disaster-affected populations with respect to their land tenure and property rights; b) ways in which weak land governance systems exacerbate the effects of disaster on vulnerable populations; c) how proactively addressing LTPR can serve as an effective disaster risk reduction measure; d) strategies for identifying and addressing LTPR issues in post-disaster settings; and, e) specific recommendations for USAID programming