Turkmen experts visit Lithuania to learn about digitalization in the land administration and management sectors

A delegation of government officials from Turkmenistan’s Ministry of Agriculture visited Lithuania from 27 to 30 October to learn from the country’s experience in digital transformation in the agriculture and land management sectors, including land registration and cadastre.

The four-day study tour was organized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) as part of its ongoing technical assistance to the Government of Turkmenistan in digitalizing its land administration and land-use monitoring systems.

“Since gaining independence, Turkmenistan has made significant progress in transforming its agricultural sector and the process continues”, said Maxim Gorgan, FAO Land Tenure Officer. “But the absence of a reliable crop monitoring system stands in the way of effective decision-making, sustainable land management and productivity gains.”

To remedy this, the Government of Turkmenistan and FAO launched a new Technical Cooperation Programme (TCP) project in January 2025, to reform and upgrade its national crop monitoring system by introducing remote sensing technologies. As part of the project, FAO has committed to delivering a training programme intended to equip the staff of the Ministry of Agriculture and its Land Resources Service with the know-how needed to operate and integrate these new technologies. 

Learning from Lithuania’s digital transformation

Lithuania has established itself as a regional leader in digital innovation for land and agricultural management, supported by advanced e-government services and strong digital infrastructure, making it a natural choice for the study tour.

During the visit, Turkmen land management specialists met with representatives of key institutions driving Lithuania’s digital transformation in agriculture and land management. These included the Ministry of Environment, which has led the country’s shift towards digital and data-driven land governance through the National Spatial Data Infrastructure; the Construction Sector Development Agency, which manages national geo-portal as well as several other information systems and processes related to spatial planning supervision, land development, state land management and the Lithuanian Positioning System (LitPOS); and the Registrų Centras (Centre of Registers), which has digitalized and manages the real estate registry, cadastre and other national registries. 

“We extend our sincere appreciation to FAO and the Ministry of Environment of Lithuania for organizing this study tour, which provided us with the opportunity to learn from Lithuania’s experience in institutional, legal and policy reforms within the land governance administration and management sectors. During the visit, we observed concrete examples of technologies and systems that could further strengthen service delivery for both public institutions and citizens in Turkmenistan,” said Govshut Shadurdyyev, Deputy Head of the Land Resources Service, Ministry of Agriculture of Turkmenistan. 

Digitalization is an integral part of the national agricultural and rural development strategies in both countries. Lithuania’s successful institutional transformation in the post-Soviet transition period offers valuable insights for Turkmenistan as it pursues its own modernization agenda, paving the way towards more efficient, transparent and sustainable land management systems.

© Ruslanas Skrobacas