Microsoft word - tanzania's land policy reform experience-sub-art

Review Paper No. 7-1
TANZANIA’S EXPERIENCE WITH
LAND ADMINISTRATION
AND
LAND POLICY REFORMS
IN A HISTORICAL SETTING
TANZANIA’S EXPERIENCE WITH LAND ADMINISTRATION
AND LAND POLICY REFORMS – The General Picture
Land Policy reform activities have been gaining prominence in developing countries worked out, issued guidelines and involved of late. This is not an accident. Reforms are poverty reduction strategies and because World. About a year ago, the African Union any further neglect thereof allows untold calm seemed to prevail. Land is the space guidelines for countries of Africa. This is for all human activities and it is because of this fact that responsible governments, the peoples of all countries in Africa, especially world over, desire to ensure good custody those of sub Saharan Africa, would benefit of land through grant and guarantee of land rights. Land Policy Reform is a mechanism important to note however, that although land issues have a universal nature, there is paving way towards secure investments in no single or simple prescription for reforms food production, housing, infrastructure that suit all countries. In fact, it would be development and environmental protection, possible to have several prescriptions even among other benefits. However, sustainable within a single country due to the diversity land policy reforms are built against the of relations with land prevailing within ethnic and regional groupings. This fact legal, institutional and technological points therefore to the difficulty facing the frameworks that are pivotal to guaranteeing land tenure rights. In this regard therefore, a which the product of their work could have meaning, or otherwise to individual African Government. It supports land development in the broadest sense as a part of socio- more rural and agrarian than are urbanized land administration enables the state to and industrial. This means that the majority broaden its revenue base through equitable of nationals in these countries earn their Major world organizations (e.g. the World issues of land access, land rights and land Bank, the European Union, Donor tenure are of prime importance to the lives Agencies, etc) concerned with economic of the majority of people and the economy at large. Much care is needed in molding Feature Article for the Print Media
May, 2007
policy options since land issues are issues their gravity on the socio-political agenda, of the majority population in communities. one thing is clear and that is that guidelines to land policy reform ought to take a very careful analysis of prevalent and emerging African countries, as free nations, differ in issues prior to their being internalized. their stage of development with regard to Also, the parameters of their application distribution. A few such stages are worthy of note: Firstly, at one end of one spectrum Tanzania may have something to offer in a way of experience since it has had a rugged some are yet to settle permanently on the path in land policy reforms over the past century. Several unique experiences in land firm land ownership relations. In some such administration, standing out conspicuously policies geared at land distribution within country: (i) that abolished the powers of countries that have been encumbered with internal conflicts, including full-scale war, within two years of independence. This act being fought on the very land needed for that was initially greeted with suspicion and had temporarily left a void in local land administration, but soon people got used to consensus on land policy, let alone land getting leaders by the ballot. (ii) that abrogated on customary tenure and almost populist land policies, and laws and are at extinguished it in law, but not all could be stages of building strategies for a land bang as a shining beacon for other countries land rights, security of tenure and enabled to learn from. (iii) that tried with several aspirations, without success, until it learnt countries are quite diverse in nature. For example: (i) issues of concern to countries participatory way to define their own land upholding some role of tribal chiefs in local tenure policy, and save the day. However, until this stage some untold experiments have no part to play in land matters, (ii) had been done on people’s land relations, issues concerning post-colonial conflicts between former settlers and natives would degrade the landscape with such a damage be specific to such situations and probably that could take long to reverse. And (iv) in differ from issues in countries that had no settlers economy or where the settler legacy prolonged, as was the development of new has been absorbed; and (iii) issues that legislation and repealing the old land laws. evolve as a consequence of complexities in Equally, many years past before a strategic social relations that are again, specifics of plan was put in place. But, at least on the issues constitute a priority and whatever systematic process of redefining people’s Prepared for the Media by the Dar Es Salaam Institute for Land Administration and Policy Studies DILAPS
May, 2007
relationships with the land that cherishes policy options to the African governments customary rights with elements of freehold of the day and facilitate initiatives to reforms for the benefit of all so as to guide land administration in taking up its proper historical milestones including: (i) the fact subsequent processes in Europe’s In a nutshell, land tenure is an important “scramble for colonies” interrupted the free aspect of human life. The value of land has development of land tenure in Africa; (ii) widely been acknowledged by all and with this awareness issues have emerged that are not easy to reconcile, even within a country continent prior to colonialism found their or geographical regions thereof. The result fate sometimes alongside with the of awareness in the value of land has many indigenous tribes of the continent; (iii) local customs and traditions were often unfortunately, fueled a rise in explosive contradictory to those of adversaries on their way, within the general rule of thumb Zimbabwe and other less explosive such as of “the winner takes all”; and (iv) colonial the lack of consensus on land policy and across the continent. It is unimaginable as African countries. This paper series will have propelled people’s relations with the land in various communities. Perhaps, the development of socio-economic formations focusing on Tanzania’s experience. The dar would have wholly defined tenure issues or Es Salaam Institute for Land administration clan, ethnic and tribal conflicts would have and Policy Studies, DILAPS hopes to make taken hold as a part of historical dynamics, a contribution to focal issues in land policy if uninterrupted by foreign guns and battles. reforms that may constitute guidelines to History tells us that conflicts that were those wishing to learn from neighbours’ experiences. The six highlighted issues in powers succumbed to the victors, seems to this attempt are: (i) historical land tenure developments; (ii) pressure, both internal upon the rise to the throne of the under dog and external, brought to bear on land policy in wholesale takeovers of policies of former makers; (iii) the cardinal role of customary enemies. Today, in many African countries, tenure in a non-industrialised economy; (iv) meaningful land policy reforms are being gender issues in search for equitable access to land and land rights; (v) titling in rural designed by those in power. This is a new lands and the importance of a well crafted physical adjudication process; and (vi) an informed position of land-use conflicts and Whatever the historical setting, the role of land tenure disputes with regard to tenure the land policy reform guideline security enhancement. development, as proposed by the African Union, would be that of providing leads on Prepared for the Media by the Dar Es Salaam Institute for Land Administration and Policy Studies DILAPS

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