The influence of land tenure reform on land tenure security, Musanze district in Northern

Province of Rwanda

Emmanuel Muyombano

Lecturer, Geography departmentUniversity of Rwanda

PhD student, Unit for Human GeographyUniversity of Gothenburg, Sweden

Rationale of Rwandan land tenure reform PhD thesis (interest of the study) Methodology Case study Land conflicts and land tenure security Land tenure reform, land use development

programmes and land tenure security

Outline

According to Anseeuw & Alden (2010):

The land tenure reform is a response to problems of land scarcity, population pressure, over cultivation, soil erosion and environmental degradation;

The reform is expected to mitigate land conflicts and lead to a redefinition of the land management and more efficient land use.

Rationale of the Rwandan land tenure reform

During the colonial period (and prior to this, in many areas):

- The monarchy had a centralized and absolute control of land

After independence: - Order of 1976 (not enforced) prohibiting subdivision and sale without government approval

Rationale of the Rwandan land tenure reform

National Land Policy: 2004

Organic Land Law: Organic Law of 2005 Determining the Use and Management of Land in Rwanda

Systematic land title registration: to guarantee the security of land tenure and promote investments in land

Rationale of the Rwandan land tenure reform

PhD project

The impact of the land tenure reform on land use changes: the Case of Musanze district, Northern Province of Rwanda

Issues of land tenure security have been raised: During the land title registration process, the implementation of the land use consolidation programme and rural grouped settlement policy

Mainly qualitative semi-structured collective interviews, in 2011 and 2012: in total 21

- Men (7)- Women (7)- Sector land committees (6)- Key informant (1)

A survey undertaken in 2011 of 150 questionnaires in each of the three sectors - provides an overview of experienced land disputes

Methodology

Three sectors were selected based on different stages of implementation of the land title registration in 2011: Follow-up on land use changes before and after

the land title registration process (PhD project)

Kimonyi (completed registration) Shingiro (registration started but not

completed) Gataraga (registration had not started)

Case study area

In a broad sense, Musahara & Huggins (2005) identify three types of land disputes in Rwanda:

Conflicting claims of land due to return of “multiple waves of refugees” in 1994 after the Genocide (old cases) and thereafter in 1996 (new cases)

The process of resettling local communities on private land transformed into rural grouped settlement

The appropriation of large plots by powerful people (in speculation)

Land title registration: land conflicts and land tenure security

Women’s land rights is a particular case: Inheritance Law 1999: giving all children, male

or female, equal rights to inherit land

Women’s land rights are stated in several Orders in the land tenure reform of Rwanda

This does not apply to co-wives in polygamous unions who have not been registered

Land title registration: land conflicts and land tenure security

An assessment in 2011 of the Inheritance Law (1999) by the Gender Monitoring Office stated:

There is misconception of the notion of gender equality, men’s selfishness leads to resistance to the provisions of the Inheritance Law

Concubinage and polygamy, which may lead to divorce - problems related to sharing household property between spouses

Inheritance Law not retroactive

Land title registration: land conflicts and land tenure security

Fewer land disputes were found in sectors where the land title registration programme was completed or in an advanced stage

N = 450

Land tenure security was being undermined for non-registered wives and their children:

“the land title registration is good but it is bad in the sense that it has not solved land disputes in families, especially for children whose mothers are not registered officially” (Woman in Kimonyi sector)

N= 450

Findings

  Kimonyi Shingiro Gataraga

yes 6.9% 11.5 % 23.8 %

No 93.1% 88.5 % 74.2%

Land use consolidation:

- According to the Rwandan Vision 2020: the issue hindering agricultural development is not the land size, but the low productivity due to the subsistence farming system

- Agriculture require shifting from such subsistence farming to commercially oriented agriculture by 2020

Land tenure reform and land use development programmes

The crop intensification program (CIP) includes: - consolidation of land use - facilitation of inputs (improved seeds and fertilizers) - provision of extension services - and improvement of post-harvest handling

and storage mechanisms

Land tenure reform and land use development programmes

Land use consolidation :

- Selected crops are grown in selected sites in a consolidated manner (land rights retained)

- Selection of crops: adaptability of the crops to the various ‘agro ecological zones’

- To transform agriculture from subsistence production to a sector of professional farmers producing for the market

Land tenure reform and land use development programmes

According to FAO, land tenure refers to: “a set of rules that define how access is granted to rights to use, control, and transfer land as well as associated responsibilities and restraints” (FAO, 2002:7).

Security of tenure is: “the certainty that a person’s rights to land will be recognized by others and protected in cases of specific challenges”. (FAO, 2002:18).

Definitions

Land use consolidation – Majority of farmers experience lack of land rights:

Farmers are not allowed to (use or control) grow non-selected crops in the land use consolidation programme areas

“Since the implementation of the land use consolidation programme, we are not allowed to mix the priority crops with other crops, we feel we don’t have our land rights.” (Woman in Shingiro sector)

Findings

Land use consolidation – Majority of farmers experience lack of land rights:

Farmers owning many plots have the chance to grow non selected crops in non selected sites

However, half of the cultivating households in Musanze district have less than 0.3ha land

Farmers are not aware of compensation plans – the expansion of land use consolidation areas in residential areas

Findings

The rural grouped settlement (Imidugudu):

- Resettlement of people (returnees in 1994 after 35 years of exile)

- To solve the problem of land scarcity

- To free agricultural land

- To provide infrastructure and social services (health centers, schools, etc.) to the local population

Land tenure reform and land use development programmes

Land tenure insecurity is being experienced due to the implementation of rural grouped resettlement policy:

- The exchanged plots are scattered and not equal in size

- Because of this, there are long distances between plots and people’s homes

Findings

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