Will land issues define our future?

Land issues seem to have taken centre stage in Rwanda. As land is redistributed countrywide, the government seeks to leave no one out. The recent land redistribution exercise in Eastern province which will be followed up with a similar exercise in other parts of the country is in line with a commitment to see to it that all land is used for the betterment of all people. It is well known that land is key to economic development. But as a result of competing interests land has become in some instances a source of conflict among communities and individuals. The unequal distribution of land can threatens security. The issue dates back to colonial times when Europeans settled on the best land, forcing Africans into unfertile reserves. The post-election violence in Kenya is thought by some to be a result of long standing problems concerning wealth and resource allocation with land being a major component. Members of the Luo and Klenjin tribes have been targeting Kikuyus, who they say have had the lion’s share of the country’s resources since Kenya’s independence. When they left at independence the British sold their land to the highest bidders who happened to be wealthy Kikuyu businessmen. That the land originally belonged to Luos and Klenjins was of little matter. What we have witnessed in the last few weeks is an ongoing war for land. De-colonisation has seen land reform efforts throughout Africa with varying degrees of success. The process whereby leaders offer to share their land with the common people offers a moral lesson to the rest. It can be done elsewhere by communities that find themselves with land shortages and a growing population. Land is a strategic resource whereby the state must take over the role of allocating it for development purposes. In effect this means that land ownership can not be left entirely to market forces where demand and supply determine who owns and develops it. If it were completely left to such forces disenchantment would be rife amongst the poor and downtrodden. This would in effect translate into a latent social-economic problem which could erupt any time. The Kenyan political crisis which has taken on ethnic undertones is a case in point. The failure of Zimbabwe’s leaders to implement effective land reform has caused one of the greatest tragedies of our age. A poorly planned and executed land reform program has seen the collapse of the once glorious Zimbabwe economy. Once the breadbasket of Africa, Zimbabwe now starves. Land ownership by the state whereby it is leased out to individual developers on a long-term basis is the best option. This offers an opportunity to entrepreneurs to carry out developments on a long term basis. At the same time it ensures that the interests of the majority are also served since the state is still in charge of land matters. Land reform will always raise a number of questions and pose challenges. But when properly done with the best of intentions and based on sensible economics, positive outcomes are attainable. Let land reform be a positive thing, a means of addressing rank injustice in society where by the landed rich accept or have to part with some of the land in their possession for social cohesion and economic emancipation of the poor. frank2kagabo@yahoo.com