Abstract
Inclusive land management not only looks at inclusive land policy, effective land administration, development and use but also calls for the empowerment of citizens. Decisions at the macro scale of land development trickle down to not only the micro scale of a neighborhood’s urban fabric and also affect the social cohesion and organization of a community. Therefore, it is essential to identify and evaluate the effects of land management policies on the micro scale. Aiming at inclusiveness of all citizens, the Sultanate of Oman developed a unique land lottery system of land distribution to its citizens. This phenomenon relates to the royal decrees number 81/84 and 125/2008 that allocates state-owned lands to Omani citizens for residential purposes as a scheme for housing public-welfare. Therefore, many are entitled to residential land. Thereon, the Ministry of Housing is responsible for planning new residential neighborhoods alongside the distribution of the plots through a random selection system. However, three decades later this process of land allocation has become more complex with the introduction of various stakeholders and middle-men such as brokers, resulting in land inflation in certain parts of Muscat but also a disruption of land use development. In line with Sustainable Development Goal 11 - making cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and empowerment our research aims to carefully look at the effects of the land lottery system on urban planning and development. The main research questions are: - What are the forms and policies of land distribution in Muscat? - What are the spatial and social effects of land distribution in Muscat? - What effect does the land lottery system of land management in Muscat have on forms of urban exclusion? The paper falls under the paradigm of qualitative research. First, major literature published on the theme is carefully assessed and backed up further by conducting key expert interviews with scholars. Second, expert and semi-structured interviews are conducted with public, private and civic stakeholders to identify the extent of urban exclusion? Furthermore, spatial mapping is conducted to assess the spatial aspects, whereas social mapping is conducted to assess the socio-spatial claims of the paper. The research shows that the process of the land lottery system has amplified if not directly led to different forms of urban exclusion in Muscat namely: Spatial and social segregation. The research also identifies key policy reformations and stakeholder constellations that need to be addressed. Furthermore, the research calls for an amendment and update of the process of land distribution and advocates for a reformation of the stakeholder constellation involved in the process. Keywords: Urban-exclusion, land lottery system, land distribution, empowerment
