This guide shares a number of initiatives and studies from recent years that have shone a light on pastoral governance and land tenure: on the inherent challenges pastoralists face, the shortcomings of governments in securing pastoral tenure, and emerging examples of success and progress from around the world. This guide proposes solutions to securing pastoral governance and tenure without undermining the inherent complexity of customary arrangements.

Rangelands are large natural landscapes that can include grasslands, shrublands, savannahs and woodlands. They are greatly influenced by, and often dependent on, the action of herbivores. In the majority of rangelands the dominant herbivores are found in domestic herds that are managed by mobile pastoralists. Most pastoralists manage their rangelands communally, benefitting from the greater flexibility and seasonal resource access that common property regimes can offer. As this book shows, this creates a major challenge for governance and institutions. This work improves our understanding of the importance of governance, how it can be strengthened and the principles that underpin good governance, in order to prevent degradation of rangelands and ensure their sustainability. It describes the nature of governance at different levels: community governance, state governance, international governance, and the unique features of rangelands that demand collective action (issues of scale, ecological disequilibrium and seasonality). A series of country case studies is presented, drawn from a wide spectrum of examples from Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia, Europe and North America. These provide contrasting lessons which are summarised to promote improved governance of rangelands and pastoralist livelihoods.

An examination of the conflicts facing traditional pastoralist societies within the developing nations of Africa. The book explores the forms of traditional land tenure and access to grazing resources, which are being increasingly eroded by modern forms of ownership and development. It shows how communal land tenure arrangements are essential not only for the survival of these societies but also to manage the pastures and rangelands in question. The case studies are by local experts. They cover Kenya, Mali, Senegal, Mauritania, Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda. Each looks at: the political and legal context, trends in pastoral development, causes of conflict, procedures for resolving conflict, and environmental implications.

First Published in 2012. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.