How to increase rural land rights registration seven-fold in less than one year?

Recent land reform developments in Madagascar Annual WB Conference on Land and Poverty, Washington DC, 03/25/14André Teyssier, World Bank, AFTA2Zo Ravelomanantsoa, National Land Tenure Program, Madagascar

The World Bank

From an «on demand» land management system to a more systematic approach

1900 1906 1912 1918 1924 1930 1936 1942 1948 1954 1960 1966 1972 1978 1984 1990 1996 2002 2008

0

5000

10000

15000

20000

25000

Nombre de documents de garantie de propriété délivrés dans les 5 communes

0,7%Titled parcels in

115 years

3%Certified parcels in

4 years

80% identified

parcels

23% certified

parcels in 1 yearCompared to the 677 land titles issued in a century, these five Communes now have 26,500 certified land parcels, and 23,000 out of them were issued during the 7-month pilot operation. This represents 25% of all certificates issued in 500 communes in 7 years in the entire country

New approach, new challenges

Operational constraints Many procedural mistakes – Needs

for a rigourous quality control Mayors are overwhelmed by tons of

land certificates to be approved Legal constraints

Land transactions cannot be registered at the Commune level. Key issue. If no system is set up to register any subsequent land transactions, efforts to certify land rights will quickly go to waste .

Some land statutes from the colonial era deprive Communes of the ability to certify a huge number of parcels

Capacities constraints Communal land tenure officers were

trained by projects. Many of them left. The average level of education among the current officers is low.

Feeling secure and/or paying taxes? A pending question

Why did 52% of households not seize the opportunity to certify their land?

The cost of the certificate is to be taken in account but this may not be the only factor.

Other reasons: various perceptions of insecurity

of tenure, lack of confidence in the

certificate to protect land rights 24% of households also expressed

the fear of greater exposure to taxes

But experience has shown that land management systems are not sustainable unless they include a tax dimension

From individual land rights registration to a new land governance

The new challenge of a decentralized land management is now moving from an “on demand” to a systematic approach for equity and efficiency purposes.

Systematic survey of land goes against farmers’ tactic to declare only one plot.

Hence, we cannot expect that all land registration will be conducted at the initiative and financing of households themselves.

This is a public investment for a more lucrative taxation system and for a comprehensive land rights registration.

This updated land governance model is to be considered as a public good.

Scaling up the pilot requires a shift of paradigm

Scaling up the pilot needs a land institution restructuring WB, EU, AFD will soon support land tenure programs based on these

pilot operations. But a nationwide land certification program requires key

prerequisites Enacting legal adjustments that will allow Communes for registering land

transactions Implementing national training capacities Determining the operational modes for support to communes for land

tenure:▪ New land institutions in charge of training, supporting and monitoring the communal

land offices?▪ Delegation of public service to private operators?

Such deep changes need political will and nation-wide debate for a shared vision.

The World Bank will contribute to the efforts of the donor community to support the newly elected Government with analytical works and a Land Policy Note.

zopnf@moov.mgateyssier@worldbank.org

Thank you!