Applying the Fit-For-Purpose Land Administration Concept to South Africa: Will it Work?
Chris WILLIAMS-WYNN, South Africa
FIG Pub. No. 60, 2014, p.6 states that “Land administration should be designed to meet the needs of the people and their relationship to land, to support security of tenure for all and to sustainably manage land use and natural resources”. A fit-for-purpose Land Administration concept has been introduced in many countries across the world – Indonesia, Nepal, Uganda, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Namibia and the Caribbean, amongst others. There have been some good reports of its implementation and many lessons learnt. This paper looks at the current South African Cadastre and considers the application of a fit-for-purpose land administration system that can bolster the existing Cadastral system and provide security of tenure that is beneficial and acceptable to all. It has been proven that people of South Africa want their rights documented; many boundaries are visible; technology exists and is available to provide a high level of accuracy at minimal cost. There is generally political will to introduce security of tenure for all. In order to achieve this, very little amendment to legislation is required – a new form of Deeds registration (recordal) is a possibility and rationalisation of imposing planning legislation is essential. The resultant land rights would easily be upgradable to formal title. This paper will demonstrate that there is much positive energy in the country and nothing is insurmountable. There is therefore very little preventing the implementation of Fit-for-purpose Land Administration for the benefit of all.
Event: FIG Working Week 2020 – CANCELLED – Smart Surveyors for Land and Water Management
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