Kenya s land reforms are on course and new land laws, the environment and land court ac, the national land commission act, the land act and the land registration act, have been enacted. The subject of land reforms is being debated with unprecedented interest and vigour. Throughout the land sector, the need to embrace change, better land governance and land rights for all has perhaps never been greater. Much of this land was previously cattle ranches, with limited. The fiveyear plan which the national land commission published in june focuses on peoples right to own land, and on resolving conflicts over tenure at. It is believed to allow previously unemployed people to participate in the economy and. It draws on historical and contemporary sociolegal and politicaleconomic sources of evidence, analyzed within a critical postcolonial institutional framework. Thus, law reform has been an integral part of land reform over the last century, such as embedding the. In this paper, this notion is analyzed based on a comparative study of land reform programs and their implications for access to land, credit, and agricultural investments in ghana, kenya. It also makes proposals on land distribution and redistribution, inheritance of land and access of land to women. The policy aims to address kenyas land tenure problems that have caused political violence during elections and mass displacements of the local population due to unresolved land grievances. Full implementation of he laws however will require the development of regulations, rules, procedures to guide implementation. This gave the settlers and the administration, with the support of another african party by minority groups. A major land reform was started m kenya in the 1950s.
This led to a clamour for land reforms which eventually yielded the kenya national land policy nlp adopted in 2009, and a comprehensive treatment of land in the constitution of kenya promulgated in august 2010. In japan, south korea and taiwan, agrarian reform helped to consolidate capitalism. Land has had great prominence in kenya politics throughout the countrys colonial and postcolonial history. The land reform agenda for kenya land portal securing. It also makes proposals on land distribution and redistribution, inheritance of land and access of. The need for land reform south africa suffered a long history of colonization, racial domination and land dispossession that. Some communities, such as those in the worstaffected rift valley province, invaded land that did not legally belong to them but which they perceived to be their birthright. The webinar on the land reform agenda for kenya took place on 10 october, 2018. Land reform and poverty in kenya global development network. For africa, however, the percentage increase in arable land 2.
Xiv devolving land governance free port at lamu manda bay in addition to resort cities at the coast and in isiolo. The parliament of kenya enacted new land laws, including. The title of the discussion reflected the protracted struggle for land reform in kenya. Reforms such as these may be proclaimed by a government. Landrelated grievances were among the underlying causes of the violence that followed kenyas disputed presidential election results in 2007. Devolution, veto players, and the limits of an institutional fix.
Pdf this article provides a critique of the final stages of kenyas land law reform process, which has resulted in the approval of the 2012 land act. Lrtu land reform transition unit knlp kenya national land policy mol ministry of lands. The long struggle for land reform in kenya mokoro article. Zimbabwes land invasion to kenyas and south africas land question will be discussed. The need for land reform was also identified by the kenya national dialogue and reconciliation as key to longterm peace and reconciliation. It shows important features of continuity and change in both colonial and postcolonial land reform. Land reform, a purposive change in the way in which agricultural land is held or owned, the methods of cultivation that are employed, or the relation of agriculture to the rest of the economy. Following independence in 1963, the government took some 36 years to consider addressing the inequitable legal and administrative system, involving land rights allocation and revocation by the. Pdf the social and economic impacts of land reform. Numerous and frequentlyupdated resource results are available from this search.
This paper studies how land tenure reform has impacted on poverty reduction, using the kenya integrated household budget survey. Land reform is probably one of the most difficult domestic policy issues to be dealt with by zimbabwe, namibia, south africa and australia. Laws of kenya land registration act chapter 300 revised edition 2012 published by the national council for law reporting with the authority of the attorneygeneral. The notion that the formal titling and individualization of land rights in developing countries lead to higher investments in land and agricultural productivity holds sway in academic and development circles. A government body tasked with implementing land reforms in kenya has launched a new strategy which aims to harness traditional methods to resolve disputes and cut down on the number of complaints going to court. Nigeria and south africa have started their way through land reforms and below are lessons learned from each. The new humanitarian land reform key to kenyas future. Pdf land reform in kenya had been on the drawing board for the last three decades informed by a number of commissions of. The reform is based on a national land policy nlp, adopted in 2009 after years of consultation. Land is the foundation of kenyas development, as recognized by two recent highly publicized government documents. This paper is an analysis of papers, reports and legislation that deals with land reform in south africa. Perceptions regarding land reform debate, progress made. Reliable information about the coronavirus covid19 is available from the world health organization current situation, international travel. Hence, understanding land reform programmes in kenya, south.
Pdf political economy of land reform implementation in kenya. Land policy in kenya free college essays, term paper. Land reform in africa lessons from kenya 73 whereas the increase in the agricultural population was slightly higher. Land reforms and politics in kenya, 195470 by john w. Banerjee massachusetts institute of technology abstract the paper is in two parts. Kenyas land reforms are on course and new land laws, the environment and land court ac, the national land commission act, the land act and the land registration act, have been enacted. Land reform in kenya some problems and perspectives by simon coldham introduction some 90% of the population of kenya lives in the rural areas and depends on agriculture, in most cases smallholder agriculture, for its livelihood.
The clamour for land reforms, the national land policy and the constitution. The need for land reforms in kenya arose from a long history of inefficient and ineffective land administration and governance system. The new constitution in 2010 enhanced previous land reform efforts by establishing a legal framework for the administration, use, and management of land in kenya. This paper sheds light on the meaning, evolution, and outcomes of land reform in ghana. The world bank suggests a 10step scaling up program to enhance land reform in africa based on lessons learned from countries like brazil, argentina, indonesia, and china. Kenya is in the midst of land reform that has farreaching implications for securing the land rights of rural people upward of 32 million in 2011, and promoting political stability and economic development. Looking at the way grievances over land have been articulated over time, it is apt to say that there is not a single land question in kenya but multiple land questions begging for attention. Architectures of governance perhaps the most significant characteristic of the most recent wave of land reform is the emphasis on. Recent years have witnessed increased interest in issues of access to and control of land in many countries in subsaharan africa. Such reforms are entitled to increase land productivity, boost food security and ensure inclusive economic growth. In each of these countries the process of land reform is incomplete. This article provides a critique of the final stages of kenya s land law reform process, which has resulted in the approval of the 2012 land act, land registration act, and national land.
We argue that there is relatively persuasive evidence showing that redistributing land may promote equity as well as efficiency. Land reforms and poiltics in kenya, 195470 the journal. Kenyas national land policy and land reform focus on land. An act of parliament to give effect to article 68 of the constitution, to revise, consolidate and rationalize land laws. Universities counties and nonstate actors in advancing land reforms in kenya.
A lesson learnt from developing countries is that tensions and potential conflicts can hinder the process of land reform. Pdf the politics of land reform in kenya 2012 researchgate. Land reform is a deeply political process and therefore many arguments for and against it have emerged. Since the 1990s, law reform has been the favoured means of addressing contentious land issues. Xiv devolving land governance free port at lamu manda bay in addition to resort cities at the coast and in. The failings of willing buyer, willing seller have.
The purpose of this article is to advance a preliminary political analysis of the impact of two major land reforms undertaken in kenya within the last 15 years. Patterns of land use and land distribution vary enormously. The recorded history of reform begins with the greeks and romans of the 6th and 2nd centuries bce, respectively. These developmental projects will form the backbone for opening up.
How land reforms have unfolded around the world the. This article is brought to you for free and open access by the valparaiso university law school at valposcholar. In this section, we zero in on masvingo province in the central south and east of the country. The ideas and principles discussed so far may be illustrated by a selective survey of the history of land reform.
Globalization of the worlds economies, the increasing and sometimes violent competitive demands for. It was also established that land reform is timeconsuming, expensive and difficult. Luke manager indian ocean research programme key points the pace of land redistribution under the principle of willing buyer, willing seller has been so slow and so heavily criticised that the ruling anc has signalled its intention to abandon the policy. Kenya is the most recent african state to acknowledge customary tenure as producing lawful property. In china, land reform initially involved land to the tiller.
Throughout east africa, land reform has failed to confront the material consequences of unequal access. Oclcs webjunction has pulled together information and resources to assist library staff as they consider how to handle. A critical examination by martin walsh of the social and economic impacts of land reform in mbeere, kenya. Zimbabwe, on one side of the spectrum, is facing a crisis in democratisation due to its radical approach to land reform. Instead, a free land market should be created in order to enable more people to. The paper covers how land law in kenya has developed ab intra. This report covers the third year of the road towards land reform in kenya. For example, in the twentieth century, many land reforms emerged from a particular political. This paper can be downloaded in pdf format from ielrcs website at. A case study of a land reform project in kwazulunatal. Among the state actors, the ministry of land and its offices such as the commissioner of land have had. The need for land reform south africa suffered a long history of colonization, racial domination and land dispossession that resulted in the bulk of the agricultural land being owned by a white minority.
Land reform in kenya valposcholar valparaiso university. These arguments vary tremendously over time and place. Currently, of course, china is encouraging capitalist farming. This past week, one of the local dailies ran a story narrating how many county and national government institutions are squatters on what used to be public property, and even face eviction by new owners. Land free fulltext the community land act in kenya.
Harbeson land has had great prominence in kenya politics throughout the countrys colonial and postcolonial history. The first part tries to understand the case for redistributive land reforms. Collectivisation followed, and from 1978, in the household responsibility system, land ownership remained with the collective. Land reform in south africa is the promise of land restitution to empower farm workers who now have the opportunity to become farmers and reduce inequality.
Over the years, kenya s land sector has faced various. It outlined definitions of land and land systems in kenya as well as set out a land legislative obligation on parliament. Implementing these reforms would enable africa to make use of its land resources to attract investments and achieve higher returns, which will lead to more growth and less poverty in the region. This article provides a critique of the final stages of kenyas land law reform process, which has resulted in the approval of the 2012 land act, land registration act, and national land commission act. In this paper, this notion is analyzed based on a comparative study of land reform programs and their implications for access to land, credit, and agricultural investments. Land in ancient athens was held in perpetuity by the tribe or clan, with individual holdings periodically. This article provides a critique of the final stages of kenyas land law reform process, which has resulted in the approval of the 2012 land act, land registration act, and national land. The long struggle for land reform and the kenya land alliance.
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