Violation Impact Assessment Tool offers solutions to communities subject to land and housing rights violations

On 12^th and 24^th September 2019, Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung in partnership with Shelters and Settlements Alternatives (SSA) conducted training at Hotel Africana for media, representatives from Municipal Development Forums and Civil Society Organizations from Mukono, Hoima and Masindi districts about a Violation Impact Assessment Tool (VIAT). The training aimed at building the capacity of participants in understanding, adopting and applying the tool.

The tool quantifies the costs of dispossession of land and home. It also provides strategic efforts at policy analysis litigation and the basis of solutions for people and communities subject to land and housing rights violations due to eviction. The training also highlighted a gender equality approach to the human right to adequate housing and land related rights and provided an overview to land rights legislative framework and protection mechanisms at international, regional and national level.

Recommendations were suggested during the training including training a big number of stakeholders in the land sector, training law enforcers like the RDCs and police who are mainly involved in evictions, build the capacity of district land boards and land committees about the tool, disseminating the tool especially to districts with rampant land evictions, legalising land ownership by having titles and agreement.