Holding a land title better secures the land in rural areas

By Jonas SINDANI on February 18, 2021
The persistence of land conflicts in Rutshuru territory seems to be due to the ignorance of the populations as to the importance of controlling their land. I am referring here to the customary titles replaced by the registration certificate issued by the public administration. Heshima Bapendane Freddy is a land affairs officer in the Goma cadastre service. In this post, he explains the procedure and demonstrates how easy it is to acquire a Certificate of Registration, the document that really secures the earth.

The question relating to land occupation or ownership is an acute one in several areas of North Kivu. The vast majority of peasants are often struggling with their “masters” or customary beneficiaries. They see their land occupied on the basis of deeds of sale and other land titles.

Local community lands are thus despoiled by wealthier candidates able to have the necessary funds to acquire the registration certificate provided by the public administration. This generates endless land conflicts. In such disputes, whoever finds the registration certificate first wins. For, Article 219 of the Land Law provides that the right to enjoy the land is legally established only by a certificate of registration of title granted by the state.

Procedures Begin With Custom
In the DRC, customary chiefs are considered to act as intermediaries between the state and the populations in matters of land management. They play an important role in land matters. Under the provisions of the Customary Power Act of 2015, customary chiefs are responsible for ensuring the security of the land of local communities.

To obtain land in rural areas, it is recommended to start the procedure with the local customary chief. “He alone has the power to allocate vacant land to anyone who requests it for exploitation,” says Heshima Bapendane Freddy. However, he adds, to prevent conflicts, before any allocation, it is required that a preliminary investigation be carried out by the customary entities to ensure that the requested land is really free or unoccupied.

Heshima Bapendane continues: “The land is acquired from the customary chief. It is with him that the original deed of sale is signed in the event of the acquisition of land for valuable consideration. “

Formalization with the State
After the authorization of the customary chief, it is necessary to proceed to the stage of formalization with the public administration to obtain a land title in order to fully verify a property. “This guarantee provided by the customary authority in the form of a deed of sale must be endorsed by the public authorities who, at the end of the process, will establish, through the provincial division of land titles, the rental contract. or the land concession contract ”, informs Freddy Heshima.

And to add: “To get there, a team of surveyors who depend on the land register must go down to the land for the measurement, the demarcation of the land … It is at the end of the work carried out by the surveyors that the above contract is established and the registration certificate issued. “

A reread:

Access to land: a matter of customs?
To protect land in rural areas and prevent or resolve land conflicts, I believe that it is important that the populations comply with the rules and procedures put in place by custom and the State in order to have the necessary land titles. . This could lead to peace in rural areas.

#PeaceLand