Findings of the Mission of German Agriforest Privatization Agency (BVVG) in the Ministry of Agriculture and its subordinate institutions National Land Service and State Land Survey Institute from September 23rd -25th, 2009.
  
 Mission Report

At the end of 2009 Van Hall Larenstein (part of Wageningen UR), University of Applied Sciences has prepared a Lithuanian Land Fund Study - “Evaluation Study on the Impact of the Land Fund on the Activity “Land Consolidation” under the Measure “Infrastructure Related to the Development and Adaptation of Agriculture and Forestry” of the Rural Development Programme of Lithuania for 2007-2013”.

 EuroGeographics 

 F:ACTS!

It is undeniable that climate change causes dramatic weather conditions, causing floods, droughts or forest fires. F:ACTS! works on making vulnerable areas more resilient to deal with and recover from problems caused by climate change. F:ACTS! is a INTERREG IVC project that was started on 1 January 2010 and finished on 31 December 2012.

F:ACTS! is focused on risk prone areas that lack resilience to respond to and recover from extreme weather conditions, due to climate change. At the beginning of the project, an overview was made of how the F:ACTS! partners are already adapting to climate change through territorial strategies.

Exchange of knowledge between partners (14 partner organisations from 8 different countries) is very important in this project. This happens in workshops during partner meetings and coaching visits between partners. The project also works with 5 pilot projects (Carrio (Galicia) Spain, Strofylia (Achaia) Western Greece, De Wijers (Limburg) Belgium, Baixo Vouga Lagunar (Aveiro) Portugal and Varna (Severoiztochen) Bulgaria).

These pilots are all areas facing droughts, floods or forest fires. Partners are looking for solutions for these specific areas, which will serve as examples for areas in Europe facing similar problems. The solutions found will be shared so that they can be implemented all over Europe.

A major part of F:ACTS! is the exchange of knowledge between partners and the opportunity to learn from the experience from other F:ACTS! partners. In order to do that, various activities such as study visits, thematic workshops during partner meetings and internships are organised.

The project is strongly action oriented, so all learnings and outcomes from exchange activities are used in real pilot projects , which have the direct support of international coaching teams from all partners.

The common objective is to deliver lessons in the following three principles for all 14 partners:
 - Transforming a technical climate adaptation approach in a people centered approach;
 - Improving multi-sectoral and multi-level governance approaches;
 - Identifying and elaborating economiccally viable approaches.

F:ACTS! (Forms for: ,,Adapting to Climate change through Territorial Strategies“) „Prisitaikymo prie klimato kaitos per teritorines strategijas formos“
 Forms for Adapting to Climate change through Territorial Strategies
 The handbook
  
 Lithuanian Land Fund Study
     Twinning Light Project “INSTITUTIONAL, ORGANISATIONAL AND LEGAL FRAMEWORK FOR THE LEASE AND SALE OF STATE OWNED AGRICULTURAL LAND IN THE REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA”.
     The Twinning Light Project “Institutional, organisational and legal framework for the lease and sale of state owned agricultural land in the Republic of Lithuania”, which was implemented by the National Land Service under the Ministry of Agriculture and German Agriforest Privatisation Agency (BVVG) was started in January, 2004 and lasted until November, 2004. The purpose of this project was to support the future development of the Lithuanian land market by proposing an institutional, organisational and legal framework for the handling of state owned and state managed land. In order to establish an efficient management of state owned land, as an important condition for competitive farming in Lithuania legal provisions for an adequate institutional framework should be installed in the near future.     

Final report
Annex to final report

 FUTURE APPROACHES TO LAND DEVELOPMENT    

     Since July 2005 till December 2007 National Land Service under the Ministry of Agriculture took part in the EU INTERREG IIIC WEST programme project „Future Approaches to Land Development“ (FARLAND). Dutch Government Service for Land and Water Management (DLG) was leading the project, where 7 public authorities and 4 research institutions from 7 countries across Europe took part.
     The overall objective of FARLAND project is to stimulate the innovation of approaches for integrated land development according to the present and future needs of regional and national authorities in Europe. Three main principles - integration, decentralization and flexibility were the keywords in analyzing measures for proper management of agricultural areas, environmentally sensitive areas and metropolitan landscapes. Core of the project was a well-structured and documented review and exchange component with regional study tours and technical exchange visits between the partners. The Final Conference was organized at the end of the FARLAND project in Budapest, Hungary, where the project partners, also representatives from the European Commission, experts from the EU member states and other countries took part.
     For more information about FARLAND project please visit the website www.farland-project.org

FARLAND book „Far Land Near Future“
Strategic vision for Future Approaches to Land Development

 FAO TCP PROJECT
 „Support to the preparation of an operational land consolidation system in Lithuania“   

     The technical cooperation project (TCP) “Support to the preparation of an operational land consolidation system”, which was implemented by The Government, represented by the Ministry of Agriculture and the National Land Service under the Ministry of Agriculture, together with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), was started in April, 2006 and lasted until June, 2007. Its main expected outputs were to development of a framework and strategy for an operational land consolidation system to support rural development and capacity building in land consolidation.
     In the process of TCP project, Strategy for a public awareness campaign was prepared, National Land Consolidation Strategy was developed and submitted to the Government for approval, Manual for the design of land consolidation projects was prepared, Manual for the application for support for EU funding for land consolidation was prepared, as well for land consolidation planners and county government administrators, step by step procedure for practical implementation of land consolidation projects was introduced.

FAO TCP project
National Land Consolidation Strategy
Strategy for a public awareness campaign
Letter of Agreement
Training Materials on Land Consolidation Projects

 Short-term project
 „Methodological guidance to impact assessment in land consolidation process“

 (2005 November 15th - 2006 May 15th):

• The manual on cost/benefit analysis in relation to land consolidation (Final report)
• The manual on environmental impact assessment in relation to land consolidation (Final report)

     Saulius Urbanas presentation "LGII Project – development of a spatial data infrastructure towards implementation of INSPIRE and GMES initiatives in Lithuania" in the regional workshop "GMES Contribution to

Environmental Policy in New EU MEmeber Countries of the Baltic Region", 13 May 2006