Pa An, Kayin State, Myanmar: Public consultations on the draft National Land Use Policycontinue Nationwide this week. The Ministry of Environmental Conservation and Forestry (MOECAF), on behalf of the National Land Resource Management Central Committee,led the event introducing the first policy of its type to be developed in Myanmar. 200 people from the government, Civil Society Organisations, members from the local community and the mediagathered at the Zwekabin Town Hall, to listen to the presentation and raise questions on the draft policy. The policy is intended to address many of the difficulties faced in reforming the governance frameworks related to democratic resource administration and strengthening land tenure security in the country. The policy is also intended to guide the development of a comprehensive umbrella land law for the country, which will help to address some of the challenging legal harmonization issues confronting the country. While improving land use administration and governance in Burma is a complex endeavor, there are promising signs that progress is being made. The development of the draft policy is one such sign. A vibrant discussion ensued following the presentation. The community asked the panel for another round of workshops to be implemented, to allow time to read and digest the draft policy in order to formulate and present their recommendations. They suggested the inclusion of representatives from ceasefire groups, Civil Society Organisations (CSO’s), experts in law formulation in the draft policy. Comments received at consultations will be categorized, assessed for relevance, and incorporated into the policy through an approach that should balance the views of various stakeholders. This process of analysis and review, will continue, and be followed up with expert round table meeting, which will be participated by internal and external technical experts and representatives of CSOs and ethnic leaders. After that a national level workshop will be organized for final inputs from key stakeholders. The policy will be finalized and the results will be made public in 2015. The purpose of the public consultations is to improve the content of the draft policy, achieve greater support for the National Land Use Policy from the public, as well as increased public confidence in the government’s commitment to a democratic development process. Public consultations on the draft policy will continue in every State and Region of the country in the coming weeks. For more information please contact: U Tin Maung Than - MOECAF – Forest Department Ph: 067-405 428 The draft policy can be viewed and downloaded at: http://www.fdmoecaf.gov.mm Those submitting written comments should identify themselves or their organization for the comments to be considered on email before December 31:[email protected]. Or deliver comments in person at the Forest Department, Building No. 39, Nay Pyi Taw.