Dar es Salaam. President Samia Suluhu Hassan on Monday launched the revised Tanzania’s National Land Policy of 1995, 2023 Edition, noting that the new document will improve national efforts in managing the land and its resources in the East African nation.
Speaking during the launching ceremony in the capital Dodoma, the Head of State said that the development of the new policy was “long overdue,” pointing out that its existence will enable the government and other stakeholders to accomplish many with regard to land exploitation and its related resources.
President Samia directed the review of the existing National Land Policy of 1995 immediately after coming to power in March 2021. Hers was a third attempt to review the policy after two previous attempts – in 2010 and 2015 – failed to successfully develop a new land policy for some unclear reasons.
The review process involved a wide array of stakeholders, including farmers and livestock keepers, plantation workers, business people, companies, and religious institutions, who shared their views on what needs to be considered in the review.
During the launching ceremony on Monday, President Samia expressed her optimism that the arrival of the new policy will signal a different future for Tanzania and its ability to benefit fully from the land it has been endowed with as well as its associated resources.
Changes expected
For example, the policy assigns policy significance to some issues that were less prioritised in the old policy document or issues that had to be done without the presence of any policy framework. These include improving the country’s international boundaries with neighbouring countries, especially in pointing out boundary markers.
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“We have been doing this without any policy guidelines,” President Samia said. “We’ve now incorporated this into the updated policy so that it can enhance implementation measures as well as empower us to enact new laws or amend the existing ones on national boundaries.”
Another issue is the blue economy and its associated opportunities whereby the new policy underlines the need to put in place policy and legal framework to manage blue economy resources by surveying and appropriating sea land that it can be effectively utilised.
The policy also addresses the burgeoning real estate sector whose contribution to national income President Samia thinks doesn’t reflect the available opportunities. The President said: “There are many unrealised potentials [in the real estate sub-sector]. This policy’s implementation will witness the sector’s growth thanks to enhanced management of the land market in the country.”
The policy also is expected to speed up the land registration exercise as almost 70 per cent of all land in Tanzania is unregistered. President Samia said the situation not only leads to the loss of revenues but also fuels inequality in land ownership as some owners pay for their ownership while others do not.
“This is neither okay nor fair,” she said. “We realised that the past policy didn’t put in place a condition for owners of land to pay for the ownership. Now, I want every piece of land planned, surveyed and registered. Now everyone’s land will be surveyed and registered and paid for.”
The policy is also expected to improve settlements of land-related conflicts. President Samia admitted that several initiatives exist to resolve land-related disputes in the country, including the presence of land tribunals that have been instrumental on that end.
“But we feel like there’s room for improvements,” the Head of State said. “We’ve seen cases where the very tribunals become a source of disputes. So, yes, there’s a need for improvement. Through this policy, therefore, we’re going to review the land tribunals and enhance control on the sources of all land-related disputes in the country.”
The new land policy is expected to improve land valuation and compensation payments. President Samia said despite the past policy including the condition of compensation payment, it was noted during the implementation that there were shortcomings in doing so, raising endless complaints among citizens.
President Samia also hopes that the new policy will enhance investment in land and its development, including attracting investors to complement national efforts to provide quality housing to people.
“The past policy didn’t allow foreign investment in real estate in selling housing units constructed,” she said. “This affected national efforts to attract foreign investment in the housing sector, including the construction of low-cost settlements, putting all the burden on the government and the National Housing Corporation.”
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The new policy also took into account the interests of Tanzania’s diaspora, including their long-time desire to be able to use and benefit from the country’s land. It also insists on the importance of record-keeping to improve efficiency and prevent unnecessary delays of services to citizens.
Implementation strategies
Minister for Land and Human Settlement, Deogratius Ndejembi, said the new policy reflects President Samia’s visions, noting that the Head of State’s directives she gave “led to today’s launching of this policy, and you deserve much plaudits.”
Strategies in place to ensure effective policy implementation include the establishment of a dedicated organ that will manage the country’s land as well as the establishment of the National Spatial Data Infrastructure, Ndejembi said.
The strategies also involve completing village land use plans as well as recognising every piece of country’s land for the country’s development. It also involves ensuring land ownership security through the programme of planning, surveying, and the appropriation of land.
