Land Administration of Communal Land: Lessons from the Ejidos in Mexico
Grenville Barnes
Mexico has led the way in Latin America, both in terms of land reform as well as in developing extensive land governance institutions over indigenous and other community held land. It has a long history of formally titling communities and by 1992 more than half of the land area of Mexico, and approximately 80% of the country?s forest resources, was covered by communal land holdings known as ejidos. This experience and how land administration institutions have been adapted over time is of particular relevance to countries, such as those in sub-Saharan Africa, which are trying to formalize customary land administration and strike a balance between statutory and customary processes. Ejidos are recognized as legal entities and are registered in a special registry known as the National Agrarian Registry or RAN. There is a uniform governance structure within all ejidos in Mexico and governance rules controlling how natural resources are distributed and managed are documented in internal regulations. Although private titles were given jointly in the name of the original applicants, these came with restrictions which made it illegal to alienate, subdivide or mortgage any of the land within the community. In 1992 the Mexican constitution was changed to allow communities to alienate land provided there was majority support for this amongst the ejido leaders. At that time, many scholars predicted that this option to alienate would lead to the dissolution and ultimate disappearance of the ejido. Although about 10% of ejidos had opted for this individualization by 2009, it is clear that ejido tenure is quite resilient and endures despite a policy environment that is skewed towards privatization.
Event: XXV FIG International Congress : Engaging the Challenges, Enhancing the Relevance
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