1 The Impact of Illegal Fencing on Tenure Security in the Communal Areas of Namibia: Case of Ohangwena Region JENNILEE KOHIMA and PRISCA MANDIMIKA Ministry of Land Reform, Namibia

Presentation Outline 1.Background 2.Overview on Communal Land 3.Land Grabbing and Fencing in Namibia 4.Overview of the Legal and Policy Framework on Fencing in Namibia 5.Case Study Ohangwena Region 6.Fencing in Ohangwena 7.Overall Findings 8.Impact of Fencing on Communal Land 9.Interventions 10.References

Background Namibian Independence in 1990 Inherited skewed land ownership Start of a comprehensive land reform process Redistribution of land from the large-scale commercial sector to landless people and those with only marginal access to land Tenure reforms in communal areas, not initially prioritized due to dominance of the redistribute land reform in public discussions National Land Reform Conference, 1991 National Land Policy: “a unitary land system, which provides for equal rights and opportunities across a range of tenure systems Namibia has a land mass of 825,415 square kilometers Population of 2.2 million (2011 Census) 20% is state land (including parks, desert, mining etc.) 44% of land is freehold/commercial farms, 10% of population live on this land 36% of land is communal 3

Overview on Communal land 1990 Constitution declared all communal land as state land 75% of the population depend on access to communal land for subsistence farming and livelihoods Communal land is common property for use by all Namibians but it’s slowly losing its common status due to illegal fencing. 5

Land Grabbing and Fencing in Namibia New wave of the land deals involving new actors including local elite, local individuals, companies and legal processes, a phenomenon that was not evident until In Namibia... Current local discourses on illegal fencing attributes the escalation in illegal fencing to the slow pace of the land redistribution programme. After independence the practice increased rapidly, due to the absence of clear legislation; Large tracts of land were enclosed in communal areas in northern Namibia. CLRA only became operational in 2003 to prevent the privatisation of commonage. Land is under threat of being grabbed by high ranking public officials, business icons and even the local people.

Overview of the Legal and Policy Framework on Fencing in Namibia Article 16 of the Namibian Constitution ---> bequeaths rights to acquire, settle, own land in any part of Namibia Communal Land Reform Act, Act No 5 of 2002 Sets out proceeding and instruments to deal with legal and illegal fences in communal areas Provides instruments to address utilization and tenure arrangements in communal areas Section 18 of CLRA Section 23 of CLRA Section 44 of CLRA Fences in communal areas must be authorized by Communal Land Board Illegal fences must be removed at owners cost Sets out penalties (punishment) for these offences, namely a maximum fine of N$4,000 or one year’s imprisonment, or both.

Ohangwena Region: North Central part of Namibia 12 constituencies Population size of 245,000 (est. 2011) with a total area of 10, 706km² Agricultural activities: small-scale mahangu cultivation and livestock production High incidence of fencing Its affiliation with illegal fencing cases in communal areas Eastern part of the region possesses good grazing land (illegal fencing is more dominant) 8 Case Study Ohangwena Region Research was undertaken in three constituencies: Ondobe Omulonga Eenhana Four Villages in these three constituencies: Ondobe Omunyekadi Etope Omatha

9 Case Study Ohangwena Region Why Ohangwena Region was chosen: High incidences of double and self land allocation, illegal fencing – 27 cases reported for adjudication High incidences of conflicts among stakeholders on areas of jurisdiction Case study illustrates that challenges to land tenure has an impact to food security and poverty Definition of secure access is relative Security of tenure vary and change by context Illustrates the dynamics of class formation in communal areas Illustrates gradual differentiation of traditional communities Loss of power and legitimacy of Traditional Authorities

This phenomenon by the strong and wealthy members within the Ohangwena region is slowly displacing and pushing out the vulnerable members out of the shared resource thus perpetuating poverty in the region. Illegal fencing affects the overall size and quality of the common grazing land for any given community. Several cases of land conflicts and disputes connected to illegal fencing have been reported in the Ohangwena region. More than half of the communal landholders in the Ohangwena region are fencing off their land parcels as demarcated and adjudicated by the MLR, CLB and TAs. In some cases fences are erected without the consent of the relevant authorities. Others fence-in more land than what was initially allocated. Illegal fencing in the Ohangwena region is a serious problem. It is connected to a series of other problems such as: increased tenure insecurity; shrinking of common grazing areas; and ultimately the disappearance of common grazing lands as well as other unintended social problems leading to instability. Fencing in Ohangwena Region

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Fencing in Ohangwena Region cont... Key Drivers of illegal fencing in Ohangwena: Population growth, Increased livestock numbers due to poor farming methods, Greed and Declining social custom of “Ubuntu” Others: Villagers systematically accumulate and fence communally owned land for private use depriving the rest of the community of rights to land and resources. More land for cropping and for the grazing of their livestock. Use fencing as a way of protecting “mahangu” crop fields from being destroyed by livestock within their neighborhoods. Putting up a fence because they see that everyone is erecting a fence and thus do not want to be the only ones left out. They stated that if they do not fence off the land parcel that part of their land parcel might be perceived as vacant and therefore allocated to someone else. Generally fencing of land parcels serves as a notification to other community members of a permanent boundary used as a sign to warn and prevent encroachment by others and to show where one’s boundary starts and ends. Act of fencing because everyone is fencing can be seen as an act of competition among the villagers. People also fence because of existing legal gaps and the lack of monitoring and enforcement of legal and policy provisions by the respective authorities that is, the Oukwanyama Traditional Authority and the Ohangwena Communal Land Board.

Fenced land parcels in the Omunyekadi village

Overall Findings 14 Influential Business People; Politicians; Wealthy People Okongo Constituency No authorization of fences received Ohangwena Communal Land Board 1 st to deal with illegal fencing 17 known cases of illegal fencing in Okongo One (1) High Court case Seven (7) cases served with removal notices Four (4) cases resolved No inventory of illegal fencing No illegal fencing recorded in the southern communal areas 2 types of illegal fencing

Impacts of Fencing on Communal Land In Ohangwena some of the illegal fences have negatively changed the way of life of the communities: Infrastructure erected by Government and is supposed to be shared is blocked from public access. E.g. of wells/borehole, ponds, paths, roads and grazing lands from livestock, forests to access fruit, grass and medicines. Results in conflict between neighbors and the breakdown of social tie and custom in the village. Social instability is not good for the development of rural communities. Social instability and land conflicts ultimately negatively affects the communal land rights registration process as the disputes have to be resolved before any land demarcation takes place. Directly or indirectly steamed by the regulations within the CLRA. It is evident to say that the provision of tenure security through the registration of customary and leasehold land increases the enclosure (fencing) of communal areas. Shrinkage of grazing land – impacts on productive capacity of farmers Displacement of vulnerable members Poverty and food insecurity Intentional redefinition of customary property rights by elites Rights infringement of other communal land users Unauthorized privatization of agricultural land

A Typical Village in Northern Namibia

Interventions Stakeholder involvement and training of TAs and CLBs on communal land administration Finalization of communal land registration Monitoring, investigation and inventory of fences in communal areas Public awareness on the governing legislation dealing with fencing Presence of law enforcement institutions Good governance in communal land Reduction of communal land conflicts Legal action against culprits involved in illegal fencing 17

Recent Media Coverages on Illegal Fencing in Namibia

19 Ohangwena Communal Land Board Meeting Ondobe Constituency: Eudaneko District Meeting

References Deininger, K., Byerlee, B., Lindsay, J., Norton, A., Selod, H. & Stickler, M Rising global interest in Farmland. Can it yield sustainable and equitable benefits? World Bank: Washington D.C. Fuller, B Improving Tenure Security for the Rural Poor: Namibia Country Case Study. [online]. Available from: ftp://ftp.fao.org/sd/SDA/SDAR/sard/Namibia%20case%20(publication%20ready).pdf [Accessed 16 September 2013]. ftp://ftp.fao.org/sd/SDA/SDAR/sard/Namibia%20case%20(publication%20ready).pdf Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH (2014). A Decade of Communal Land Reform in Namibia: Review and Lessons Learnt, with a Focus on Communal Land Rights Registration. GIZ. Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale: Windhoek. Matondi, P.B., Havnevik, K. & Beyene, A. (eds.) Biofuels, Land-Grabbing and Food Security in Africa. Zed Books: London. National Planning Commission Namibia 2011 Population and Housing Census Preliminary Results. Republic of Namibia: Windhoek. Werner, W What has happened has happened: The complexity of fencing in Namibia’s communal areas. Legal Assistance Centre: Windhoek.

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