RURAL DEVELOPMENT INSTITUTE

RDI is an international nonprofit organization working to secure land rights for the world’s poorest people, those 3.4 billion chiefly rural people who live on less than $2 a day.

Land rights represent the single greatest asset for the world’s

rural poor. For decades, RDI has used the law to bring land rights to the poor in a peaceful, fair and democratic manner.

For 40 years, RDI professionals have worked with the governments of 40 developing countries, foreign aid agencies, and other partners to design and implement laws, policies, and programs that provide opportunity, further economic growth, and promote social justice. To date, RDI has helped provide land rights to more than 400,000,000 people.

Our Work | Our Mission | Our Results

What's New

Omidyar Network Provides $4.3 Million to RDI to Bring Land Rights to Millions in India
RDI is pleased to announce one of the largest grants in its history: $4.3 million from Omidyar Network, a philanthropic investment firm committed to creating opportunity for people around the world. The grant will allow RDI to expand its work with the state government of Andhra Pradesh and provide land and opportunity for millions of rural families. More ...

Land Rights and the Global Food Crisis
What does the global food crisis have to do with land? For nearly half the world’s population--the majority of whom live in rural areas and survive on less than $1 a day--land means everything. Read the response of RDI’s founder, Roy Prosterman, on the world food crisis and how secure land rights can lead to food security. More…

Women’s Land Rights in Burundi: "Hot and Bad News from Bujumbura"
Just days after RDI attorney Deborah Espinosa returned from Burundi, violent conflicts erupted in the capital. Read her inside look at Burundi’s efforts to rebuild after a 12-year civil war, and the status of women’s and widows’ land rights. More…

SOLD OUT: Saving Land for Farmers in China: A Case for Barefoot Lawyers
On Friday, May 30, RDI attorneys Li Ping and Zhu Keliang will hold a policy briefing on land rights for China’s farmers and a new initiative to bring legal aid to the countryside. Want to get involved and help support this new initiative? Read on. More…

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Land ownership
changes lives,
and that can change
our world.
Read stories of
lives changed.

If you think that
micro-lending is a
good idea, consider
micro-owning.

Learn about how
homestead plots as
small as 3000 sq. feet
(only 1/15th of an acre)
can provide substantial
nutrition and income to
the poorest families
on the earth.

Learn why land rights
are the best source of economic opportunity
for the world’s rural poor and
an essential part of the fight
to eliminate global poverty.