The rise in a backlog of land-related issues in Kirehe District has compelled the National Land Authority (NLA) to intervene to resolve the increasing number of disputes.

Statistics from NLA show that 80 percent of the cases received by district authorities are related to land. Such cases include informal land transfers and unregulated transactions which led to multiple ownership claims and boundary disputes in mainly Mahama, Nyamugali, Nyarubuye and Nasho sectors.

ALSO READ: Land-disputes-now-resolved-differently-pursuant-to-new-land-law-in-rwanda

In response to these issues, NLA launched a capacity-building initiative aimed at updating land officers and committees with the new land law framework to effectively resolve land-related conflicts.

Marie Grace Nishimwe, the Director General of NLA, announced a new partnership with Landesa, a non-profit organization, to further assist in resolving land disputes in Kirehe. As part of this collaboration, the NLA will deploy 50 land technicians who will focus on training and building the capacity of land officers and land committees responsible for managing land disputes.

"Local mediators, known as abunzi, along with land officers and sector-level land committees will receive training on land law and dispute resolution procedures," Nishimwe explained.

"This will help reduce the backlog of unresolved cases. In collaboration with surveyors and technicians, we will also correct boundary errors to ensure that land demarcations are consistent with official maps. This process will significantly reduce the number of disputes submitted to land offices."

The NLA identified key areas that require immediate attention, including the acquisition and registration of land parcels. As of July, only 3,000 of the more than 28,000 land parcels requiring records had been properly documented. The agency emphasized that this gap underscores the need for institutional reform and additional resources to address long-standing land governance issues that have hindered development in the district.

Kirehe District Mayor Bruno Rangira highlighted the severity of the situation, calling for urgent support to address the escalating land disputes.

"Our district urgently needs assistance. The high demand for land, combined with complex allocation processes, has caused issues,” Rangira said.

"Around 80 percent of our cases involve land disputes, including illegal land transfers and instances where private properties have been mistakenly registered as state-owned. We need capacity building and support for our land administration teams to address these challenges effectively."

The NLA in partnership with Landesa announced a series of joint land audits, dispute resolution forums, and public awareness campaigns aimed at ensuring proper land documentation and compliance with existing laws. The initiative will include significant technical capacity-building support for local officials, enabling them to handle complex land cases that arise from unregulated transactions.

ALSO READ: What-you-need-to-know-about-termination-of-land-ownership-contracts

At the community level, the NLA is encouraging residents to seek mediation to resolve disputes. This approach, they believe, will promote peaceful resolutions and reduce the burden on local land offices.

Emmanuel Ngomiraronka, the Country Director of Landesa, noted that many land officers have been operating under outdated laws, leading to confusion and inconsistencies in land management. "We will provide training on the 2021 Land Law, family law, dispute resolution, and digital skills to ensure that land authorities can properly oversee legal frameworks on land rights and management," Ngomiraronka said.

He added that over 1,000 land officers and land committee members would benefit from this training, streamlining dispute resolution and enhancing legal compliance. In addition to resolving boundary and property disputes, the initiative will also address other pressing issues. These include the proper registration of land parcels, the unclear management of farms recovered by the state, and the re-demarcation of overlapping boundaries in farmland.

The prevention of informal physical plans created by engineers for subdivisions, as well as disputes involving forests on state-owned land, are also key priorities. The capacity building workshop will also extend to Kayonza and Nyagatare districts.

Kirehe district has an area of 1,118 square kilometres and is home to over 460,000 residents across 12 sectors.