Comments on Africa presentation on key challenges Harold Liversage, Land Tenure Adviser, IFAD h.liversage@ifad.org Some key issues raised: Need for better recognition of customary and informal rights. Huge diversity in customary systems – with different recognitions of the balance of group and individual rights. Means a recognition of overlapping and secondary rights. Diversity across regions and within countries – has implications for land policies and their implementation. Not just diversity in customary – also statutory (anglophone, francophone and lusophone). What does greater recognition of customary and informal mean? Integration of customary into statutory or statutory into customary? Okoth-Ogendo argues that (i) while the state is the biggest owner of land, little land is registered under statutory systems; (ii) the central state is the largest land grabber. Important that locally based customary systems act as a check to central state administration and vice versa.

Decentralisation is important. Local government (districts, communes) are the meeting point between statutory and customary land administration systems. Do not underestimate the capacity requirements for new approaches. Local land officers are expected to be multi-disciplinary, with surveying, legal and facilitation skills. Reinvesting revenue generated from land administration into these systems is essential. While new technologies provide new opportunities, there are risks: (i) their introduction can sometimes be resisted by local officials and (ii) can result in more efficient dispossession of land of customary and informal rights holders. Scaling up of pilot experience is a key challenge. Systematic processes have merit but there is a concern regarding the cost and who will covers these (the state or the client). Demand driven approaches may be more appropriate. Targeting areas of high demand (for example, peri-urban) may be better. A dual-level approach of more formal, demand driven registration for commercial activities and less formal systematic registration of customary rights is one approach emerging that tries to reconcile the challenge. Role of civil society organisations is important. There is some diversity in CSOs and their roles as advocates and as service providers. These can sometimes be in tension. Capacity of CSOs also needs to be developed.