Discourse on customary land act of 2016: Evolution of land rights or devolution of powers
Edward Chikhwenda, Mary Kamwaza
University of Malawi Polytechnic, P/Bag 303, Chichiri, Blantyre 3, Malawi
•Land question in Malawi has been a major challenge for both colonial and current administration.
•Before the 1884 Berlin Conference, land allocation was based on customary law.
•Europeans arrived and introduced western statutory laws and this resulted in dualism of land tenure; customary and western.
•This fuelled conflicts. Commissions of enquiry have culminated into the approval of the Customary Land Act of 2016 whose aim is to formalise customary land rights in customary estates.
•The Act has met criticisms from NGOs, civil society, traditional leaders and communities. The aim of this study is to establish challenges and opportunities of The Act and to evaluate The Act’s structures and its impact on the communities.
Event: Annual World Bank Conference on Land and Poverty 2019
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