Existing Land Use in Uganda

Land use in Uganda is comprised of various policies and regulations that regard the native population. A level of complexity is brought to Uganda’s land use that is unique to the country, this complexity is caused by the large influx of refugees. Citizens of Uganda can purchase or inherit land. However,  issues are arising with the growing population of refugees receiving land from the government, often taken from the native population. By understanding and using the systems that are already in place, we can learn how to strategize land use and the location of newly arriving populations in an equitable way.

The 1995 Ugandan Constitution set in place the following land tenure systems. The Mailo Land Tenure allows for land in central Uganda to be registered, owned, and passed down through generations with its holder having a land title but all transactions must therefore be authorized by the state. The Freehold Land Tenure grants were issued to church missionaries, academic institutions and citizens for private land ownership under English law. In a Leasehold system, one owns land for a period usually 49 or 99 years with agreed terms / conditions from an individual, a local authority, an organization / company, Buganda Kingdom institution or the Ugandan government. Customary Land Tenure applies to north, south, and western Uganda, land is usually overseen by elders, clan heads or a group in its own well-defined administrative structure / authority. Over 60% of land in Uganda is owned by the people and have rights to it, but  oftentimes, people do not have land titles. Under Public Land Tenure, the government owns land and has the right to lease it to any company, organization or individuals on specific terms and covenants, in most cases, for business, urban use, as well as refugees.

Even with these extensive land ownership systems available, the prospect of refugees being able to use one is unlikely due to the 2006 Refugees Act; where “refugees cannot own the land they cultivate or the homes they live in - even if they have lived in the country for years”. The Refugee Law Project in 2003, Nakivale was affected by a land crisis, in which nationals (who claimed title or rights) were fighting over land the government allocated to the new refugees. In 2013, more than 60,000 Ugandan nationals, who settled on Kyangwali refugee settlement in central-western Uganda marked for refugees, were forcibly removed to make way for Congolese arrivals resulting in increasing tensions.

The Land Fund is one of the multiple financial resources derived for the use of people including, tenants seeking to buy / own land, government seeking to buy land for redistribution to occupants or resettlement of the landless, loans to persons wanting to acquire titles, and possibly surveying land. The monetary supplements can help people gain land but they would still need to understand the different types of ownership. [4]

Gendered land ownership is largely more complex based on titles or registered deeds. Both men and women can have a joint ownership of land, even though “women’s names are rarely on the documents and women may lose these claims if their marriage dissolves”. Neither men nor women have independent decision-making rights to land; thus, ownership of land is not associated with full rights independently. Yet people perceive as relatively secure in their land rights.

As stated, the government designates land for ownership and there is plenty of administrative help. However there is still ambiguity when it comes to land use.  In terms of application from the government, it is lacking majorly; “The  housing  needs  both  in  rural  and  urban  areas  are  very  high. Housing  in  the rural  areas  is  predominantly  of  low  quality  while  that  of  urban  areas  is characterized by inadequacy in both quality and quantity”. This is mostly due to low incomes, high pricing of land and materials, and the inadequate help in labor as well as monetary. A large problem is environmental degradation, in which, people are encroaching into areas not meant for human settlement.[5]

An example of an organization that is actively helping in the crisis for housing is the Habitat for Humanity Uganda (HFHU), who since 1982, have built, rehabilitated, repaired or improved more than 8,500 houses – helping over 62,000 people achieve affordable quality housing. “With an average income of $65 a month it is not surprising that over two-thirds of Ugandans live in substandard housing”.[6]

The fight for decent housing and who has the right for the land has been a continual battle. Nevertheless, with increasing refugee populations over recent years it’s become an even larger challenge.. There are many tactics that could be used, for example: locating a specific area for refugees only, where natives that are displaced are given same amount land elsewhere to make up for it. These tactics must go through thorough evaluation and perhaps pilot tests to ensure effectiveness.