Support to the Sierra Leone Land Agenda : Policy Note
Land administration in Sierra Leone is a complex issue. The current process of registration in Freetown is ineffective and disorganized, leading to a widening gap in the credibility of both the cadaster and registry. Surveying quality is inadequate...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Language: | English |
| Published: |
World Bank, Washington, DC
2019
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/856111560491680914/Support-to-the-Sierra-Leone-Land-Agenda-Policy-Note http://hdl.handle.net/10986/32022 |
| Summary: | Land administration in Sierra Leone is a
complex issue. The current process of registration in
Freetown is ineffective and disorganized, leading to a
widening gap in the credibility of both the cadaster and
registry. Surveying quality is inadequate due to lack of
trained surveyors in modern electronic surveying and mapping
techniques, and a shortage of equipment. Most of the
confusion and contradictions dominating the typology of land
issues in the provinces emanates from the general absence of
well-established cadastral boundaries. The new national
lands policy of Sierra Leone aspires to gradually formalize
land transactions while respecting the customary systems.
Mandatory land transaction recording and registration can be
an effective step towards the implementation of land related
policy. In parallel, communication and sensitization
campaigns will be carried out to avoid situations where
ignorance of the requirement to register land on a first
served basis may violate the rights of genuine land owners
because their land can be registered to somebody more
familiar with the system. Government decentralization and
empowerment of municipalities should improve the process
efficiency. A Crucial requirement in order to build an
effective and modern land administration and management
system is to abandon the manual recording system and move
towards a digital and computerized one. |
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