One
of
the
most
anticipated
plenary
sessions
during
this
year’s Conference
on
Land
Policy
in
Africa
(CLPA) featured
panelists
from
diverse
professional
backgrounds
to
speak
on
the
topic: Colonial
continuities
and
discontinuities:
Who
has
the
right
to
access
and
own
land
in
Africa”. With
Kimani
Njogu
as
the
Session
Chair,
the
panel
of
presenters
included
Justice
Smokin
Wanjala,
Judge
of
the
Supreme
Court
of
Kenya
and
Director
General
of
the
Kenya
Judiciary
Academy;
Tsitsi
Choruma-Dozwa,
Commissioner
of
the
Zimbabwe
Land
Commission,
and
Jimmy
Ochom,
Land
Rights
Coordinator
from
Oxfam.
Justice
Wanjala
opened
the
floor
by
reminding
participants
of
the
ways
in
which
colonial
legacies
continue
to
shape
land
ownership
and
access,
displacing
communities
and
undermining
customary
systems.
Drawing
examples
from
Kenya,
he
highlighted
the
country’s
jurisprudence
that
has
held
since
independence,
giving
priority
to
land
registration
by
individuals
or
entities
over
customary
land
claims
that
governed
African
land
before
colonialism.
He
urged
members
to
be
careful
in
their
solution-finding
in
order
to
not
base
new
laws
and
constitutions
on
colonial
continuities. He
said
that,
despite
being
sidelined,
customary
tenure
systems
remain
resilient
and
functional
in
many
parts.
The
challenge
posed
to
participants
was
to
formally
recognize
these
systems
and
integrate
them
into
modern
land
administration
frameworks.
Ms.
Choruma-Dozwa
began
her
presentation
by
asking
participants
to
reflect
on
the
question: Who
has
the
right
to
land
in
Africa? Using
Zimbabwe’s
history
with
land
acts
and
agreements,
participants
were
able
to
follow
the
formulation
and
enforcement
of
discriminatory
land
acts
through
to
their
subsequent
discontinuation.
The
Land
Apportionment
Act
and
Land
Tenure
Act
of
1931
and
1969
respectively
racially
segregated
land
in
Zimbabwe,
awarding
Europeans
and
Africans
the
same
amount
of
land
(45
million
hectares
each)
despite
the
disparity
in
population
(Africans
were 95%
of
the
population
while
Europeans
only
made
up
5%).
The
unequal
distribution
of
land
was
at
the
centre
of
the
independence
war
in
Zimbabwe
that
marked
the
beginning
of
apportioning
of
African
land
to
Africans.
Some
of
the
measures
put
in
place
included
the
decongestion
policy
where
Africans
were
allowed
to
live
and
work
on
their
land.
Furthermore,
farmers
were
given
priority
for
settlement
to
ensure
the
country
did
not
lose
productivity.
Other
measures
were
the
Land
Bank
to
support
new
farmers,
the
inauguration
of
the
Zimbabwe
Land
Commission.
It
was
also
in
this
process
that
the
Zimbabwe
government
gave
titles
to
all
resettled
people.
According
to
Tsitsi,
of
the
resettled
people,
20%
of
the
allocated
land
was
given
to
women
in
their
own
right,
7.5%
to
the
youth
and
8.5%
to
war
veterans
in
the
country.
As
a
result
of
these
measures
put
in
place,
“Zimbabwe
became
an
agriculturally
self-sustaining
country
in
cereal
production
with
the
country
able
to
export
surplus
grains”,
she
said.
Despite
the
major
progress
made
in
land
reforms,
some
colonial
continuities
still
persist
today
such
as
Africans
owning
the
oversized
farms
left
by
the
white
settlers
and
not
being
willing
to
portion
it
for
the
resettlement
of
fellow
Africans.
Also, sanctions
were
imposed
on
Zimbabwe
by
western
nations
due
to
the
policies
put
in
place.
On
the
question
of
sanctions,
she
finished
by
leaving
participants
with
a
Shona
proverb
that
loosely
translates
to
‘He
who
kicks
a
frog
helps
it
get
over
a
huddle.’
In
this
context,
referring
to
the
withdrawal
of
foreign
aid,
forcing
Zimbabwe
to
become
self-sufficient
in
food
production.
Mr.
Ochom
capped
off
the
session
by
stressing
the
importance
of
inclusive
approaches,
such
as
joint
ventures
for
under-resourced
farmers.
He
reaffirmed
the
state’s
role
in
reclaiming
and
replanning
land
for
public
good.
“Colonial
continuities”,
he
said,
“can
be
dismantled
by
justice
and
reparations
through
equitable
community-centred
governance”.
In
Uganda,
customary
tenure
is
able
to
co-exist
with
individual
tenure
through
constitutional
frameworks
enacted
by
their
government.
In
conclusion,
a
lasting
solution
to
the
question
of
land
on
the
continent,
according
to
Mr.
Ochom,
would
be
advancing
continental
frameworks
for
land
justice
and
reparations
from
the
grassroots
to
policy
level.
Source:
Who
has
the
right
to
own
land
in
Africa?
|
United
Nations
Economic
Commission
for
Africa