Using Geospatial Technologies to Monitor Land Use, Improve Delivery of Land Services, and Improve Land Governance (Malawi Exprience)
Luhanga, Ivy et al.
The Government of Malawi through the Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development and Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development piloted a project in 2014 to assess land utilisation within estates in Kasungu District using satellite imagery. This paper focuses on a component of the project which aimed to improve the management of agricultural estates deeds. Cadastral maps were digitized and geo-referenced and digital information on land titles was used to update estate records. Data was entered and analysed in custom developed GIS software. In total, 3,734 estates were digitized. Results showed that lease term for 90 percent of the land titles has expired and some estates overlap with other estates. A field verification operation showed informal changes of ownership in some estates and differences between GPS surveyed boundaries and sketch or deed plans. Most estate owners indicated much higher percentages of agricultural land use than satellite image classification. Land disputes or encroachment issues were also reported. The recommendation is to scale-up the project while taking advantage of the existing Globe Titles and Deeds Registration System software and infrastructure, to build a nationwide Estates Information System by introducing a geographic component to the system.
Event: Annual World Bank Conference on Land and Poverty 2015
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