Land is a major economic, political, social and cultural asset in developing countries. Controlling land resources at the national or local level is an important means to accumulate political, economic and social power. Thus, land reform is a highly politicized process that can be seen as a threat to the interests of certain actors, but also an opportunity to change political and social relations. The need for reform is widely acknowledged to address problems related to competing land tenures (i.e. rights of access and use of land), and the exploitation of economic opportunities associated with increasing land value or more productive land uses in rural and urban areas. Land tenure systems in developing countries have been profoundly changed by decades of colonial and post-independence government interference, and are continually adapting as a result of social, economic, political and cultural change. These systems are commonly referred to as “customary” systems because they are based on custom and tradition, rather than written law or contract. In some instances, customary authorities have managed to maintain or even strengthen their power, whereas in other cases they have been eroded by change in the demographic composition of the local population, change in the balance of power in local economic relations, or competition from central and local government institutions. Access to land and security of tenure are necessary conditions for people to raise and stabilize their incomes, and participate in economic growth. In most developing countries, agriculture is a main economic activity, and access to land is a fundamental means whereby the poor can ensure household food supplies and generate income. However, land use regulation often tends to protect large-scale farms that produce agricultural exports at the expense of small-scale customary lands used mainly for food crops. Hence land rights are essential prerequisites for sustainable agriculture, economic growth, poverty alleviation, market power, sustainable natural resources, and culture preservation. The government of Sierra Leone is considering to reform the land tenure system so that there can be land security whilst using the asset of land to facilitate economic development and retain traditional rights on the land. The reform of land rights is central to the achievement of the government’s strategic policy set out in the Agenda for Change. To achieve this objective there will need to a reform of the land tenure system and a systems and capacity development to provide accurate land demarcation, ownership and lease licensing. Any reform must have a long vision. By 2050 the country is expected to have threefold increase in the current population when climate change will affect food security; urbanization may well have continued at the current pace and the population and economic growth will have had an additional environmental impact. Land is a highly political and emotional issue and any reform will have to be approached with extreme sensitivity and be as a transparent and inclusive as possible. Any reform of the land tenure system will touch on the complex issue between the traditional and modern government and control of natural resources. The broad areas of reform will include freehold rights, leasehold rights, traditional rights and access to land, land as collateral, rights to invest in land. Sierra Lone has abundant fertile land yet so much of the land is uncultivated. The reason for this situation, may be, in part, related to land tenure. Currently, land with respect to agricultural production has been studied the most. The 2006 study by Unruh and Turray “Land Tenure , food security and investment in postwar Sierra Leone” (2006; FAO) summaries the current thinking on land with respect to agriculture. The report recommends many points of which these three are central: - customary land owning families need to have greater tenure security so as to have confidence to lease land
- significant consideration should be given to forms for lease that are able to manage the “element of continuation” beyond simply lease payments
- caution should be applied with regard to the move toward freehold tenure
Closely associated with land is the issue of water. Water is likely to become a very rare resource and potential the source of conflict. Current scientific analysis shows that Sierra Leone will have more water than countries in the regional and thus can expect “climate change refugees”. UNDP Sierra Leone requires the skills of a person very experienced in land tenure and related issues to assist the government to determine and implement its policy of land tenure. |