On March 5-7, RRI held the 13th Regional Dialogue on Forests, Governance and Climate Change for Central and West Africa in Yaound?, Cameroon. It was co-organized by the Central African Forest Commission (COMIFAC), the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), and the Cameroon Ministry of Forest and Wildlife (MINFOF). The Dialogue, titled ?Harmonizing Tenure and Resource Policies in Central and West Africa’s Changing Landscape? generated a dynamic discourse among policy makers and development experts in Central and West Africa on the social, economic, and environmental impacts of land deals or concessions in Africa?particularly on former forest land and woodland, or with land with conflicting community or customary rights over it. This Dialogue was the first time that government officials from ministries besides forest and land gathered to discuss the social, economic, and environmental impacts of land deals or concessions in Africa. In particular the Agriculture and Mining ministry representatives from Gabon, DRC, and CAR were particularly engaged. Discussions during the Dialogue show that enhanced coordination between the ministries of mining, forestry and land will help ensure that development initiatives throughout Africa are sustainable, and based on respecting the rights and cultures of all citizens. Participants in the Dialogue agreed to initiate a regular monitoring of progress in land and tenure reforms, distill a practical index from existing assessment tools that governments and civil society can use to track this progress, and reconvene countries on a regular basis to discuss progress on reform.