LMB, other delegates, attend World Bank Land Conference 2024 in Washington D.C.

From May 13 to 17, 2024, LMB Director Emelyne Talabis and Legal Division Chief Marlou Alutaya participated in the 2024 World Bank Land Conference at its headquarters in Washington, D.C. The conference’s theme, “Securing Land Tenure and Access for Climate Action,” emphasized effective strategies for securing land tenure and access to support climate change mitigation and adaptation.

The event saw the participation of delegates from over 81 countries, representing government agencies and various institutions worldwide. In addition to LMB, the Philippine delegation included Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) Undersecretary Amihilda Sangcopan and Assistant Secretary Marjorie Ayson, Department of Finance (DOF) OIC Undersecretary Niño Raymond Alvina, Land Registration Authority (LRA) Administrator Gerardo Sirios, and Bureau of Local Government Finance (BLGF) Executive Director Ching Agcaoilli. Topics in each session had themes on tenure and its relationship to various societal issues, land administration, climate, urbanization, and women’s rights, among others.

World Bank’s Vice President for Sustainable Development, Juergen Voegele, discussed the implications of change on land resources, stating, “If you want resilient cities, everybody needs to deal with land use rights in their own context. Everything is changing around us in a rapid way. Coastal areas change, dry land areas change, wet areas change – all of these have implications for our land values. One resource that may not be important in the past may be important moving forward. What is the most meaningful thing to do if we have limited resources?”

In a courtesy visit to the Philippine Embassy in the United States, the Philippine delegation also briefed Philippine Ambassador Jose Manuel del Gallego Romualdez on the conference. Ambassador Romualdez underscored the vital role of land agencies in driving economic development and highlighted the significant interest of US businesses in investing in the Philippines. He noted that such investments would be substantially boosted by establishing strong partnerships with legitimate landowners.