Snail's pace in issuance of Secure Land Titles
Land Boards across the country gave plot owners an October 2022 deadline to have registered their tribal or state land to get the new Secure Land Title (SLTs) when President Mokgweetsi Masisi launched the programme in June 2022.
According to Botswana Association for Tribal Land Authorities (BATLA), as at July 4, 2023 there were about 4 500 SLTs produced and issued across Land Boards, out of 500 000 applications for registration that have been received by Land Boards nationwide.
At the moment, the Chobe Land Board has produced the highest number of SLTs with about 1 200, however the numbers keep changing depending on the number of SLTs lodged at the Deeds Registry on a daily basis.
Recently, the Rolong Land Board told the media that so far, they have issued about 146 SLTs, and 41 have already been collected by owners. Applications for SLTs stand at around 9 000 in the Landboard.
Land Board Secretary, Mosegofatsi Bose explained that while they had anticipated faster issuance of SLTs, the reality is that since the system is new, it is not as fast.
“As with anything that is new, there are teething problems that we believe we will overcome,” he said, adding that among interventions is the training of staff. The SLT is said to unlock the economic value of tribal land and is also
expected to reduce costs for citizens, as there will no longer be need for private survey and conveyance fees.
According to BATLA President, Johane Chenjekwa, the delay in the issuance of SLT is attributed to the fact that in the past, Land Boards used to allocate un-demarcated land parcels which were not surveyed and approved by the Department of Surveys and Mapping.
He explained that the Botswana Land Policy of 2015 revised in 2019 declared the whole country a planning area, which necessitated that all land allocations, should be planned and demarcated.
“It then follows that the process of producing SLTs dictates that all plots be approved and the boundaries within which they exist should be surveyed and registered so that an individual plot takes reference or identity from a registered boundary,” he said.
He continued that with such requirements, Land Boards embarked on a massive drive to survey all boundaries and plots that exist inside the boundary according to the set standards and submit the same for approval and registration.
Chenjekwa said the process of registration of the SLTs follows different processes, which happen at different departments within the ministry and it is a rigorous undertaking that entails interdepartmental checks and balances.
He explained that first, Survey Diagrams created at the Land Boards by the Department of Surveys and Mapping must be approved and then loaded into Land Information System, which is managed by the Geospatial Information Centre.
“The process is currently done manually, making the loading of information for use by Land Boards for their transactions slower,” Chenjekwa, who is also the Chairman of the Chobe Land Board, told Botswana Guardian.
He explained that those formally allocated are expected to submit applications for re-registration of their current Titles from Customary Law, Common Law Grants or Title Deeds so that Secure Land Titles can be produced in place of such Titles.
“The response rates from the public is very low,” he added.
Further, some of the documents submitted by applicants are not correct hence their applications for SLTs cannot be processed with the Deeds Registry until they correct them.
“There are often frequent network challenges due to system downtime,” Chenjekwa said, adding that the process is engaging, hence the actual value creation of the SLT. In addition, there are limited resources to facilitate the process at Land Boards.
SLTs are exclusively produced by the Deeds Registry.
Chenjekwa said that while the process is slow, they continue to encourage members of the public to submit their valid registration documents for processing.
He confirmed that about 1 900 employees from Land Boards and other departments have been trained in the last financial year and the training is still continuing.
Among other benefits of SLT is that they are expected to provide accurate and reliable information that will enhance prompt and informed decision-making by Land Boards, as well as guard against fraud and forgery.
They would also present a lot of opportunities for landowners including acting as collateral in financial institutions when they seek financial assistance.
To be registered, plot owners will have to fill in a claim form staking a claim to a land parcel that they occupied or use.
They will also have to submit supporting documents including Identity document (Omang) to verify the plot owner, marriage regime and spouse details for married couples, copy of land title as proof of ownership - that is customary certificate, common law leases and title deeds- as well as verification of development of the ground.
BATLA works closely with the Ministry of Lands and Water Affairs.