Applying good governance to urban land management - Why and how?

Because German surveyors are becoming increasingly involved in the international debate on land management, the article focuses on actual world-wide trends: Urban growth rates are still very high in many developing countries. As a result of the uncontrolled and uncoordinated growth of many cities, urban development is far from being sustainable. At present, two international campaigns promoted by United Nations Center for Human Settlements (UNCHS/Habitat) focus explicitly on sustainable urban development: the global campaign for (good) urban governance and the one for secure tenure. The paper shows how the incorporation of the norms of good urban governance - sustainability, subsidiarity, equity, efficiency, transparency and accountability, civic engagement and citizenship, and security - in urban land management offers ways to improve the actual situation. One by one, the norms are briefly described according to their objectives proposed by UNCHS and subsequently are applied to urban land management. In conclusion, the importance of the changing role of the State and the empowerment of Civil Society are highlighted.