14 Aug 2022

The re-enacted Tribal Land Act of 2018 brought major changes in the land delivery process, mainly digitalisation and title issuance for tribal land.

Addressing a press conference in Francistown Thursday, Ngwato Land Board Chairperson, Mr David Modisagape said the act called for among others amendment of the laws to enable registration of customary land grants, survey of all land in the country, declaration of the whole country as a planning area including development of Land Information System.

He said the act brought along some changes that required land boards to consult with Tribal Administration and District Councils in formulation of policies and permits, transfer of land board functions or powers to other bodies with the consent of the minister. 

He said land boards were now empowered to establish committees to enhance efficiency.

Mr Modisagape however observed that all land rights that were granted by Dikgosi before establishment of land boards and those allocated by land board in terms of the repealed act were required to apply to land board for registration.

This registration of land grants or leases, he said, should be done within six months of the commencement of the act.

Mr Modisagape also said where transfer of land was proposed in favour of a non-citizen, the holder of such land was required to publish the proposed transaction in the Government Gazette and at least one newspaper circulating in Botswana. 

He said land board was faced with challenges of shortage of land and in this regard the board had to follow a difficult route of dispossessing land from people.

“If a plot was allocated for residential, it should be developed in five years while common law or business plots should be developed within one year,” he said.

Mr Modisagape said squatter settlements was one of the challenges in some parts of the country.

He said no one had ever indicated that they were illegally occupying land for the reason that they had been on the waiting list for a long time.

Furthermore, he said the sub-land board experienced a situation where borehole owners allocated themselves ploughing fields next to their water points and that some boreholes owners in ploughing fields were illegally using the boreholes for watering their livestock.

Meanwhile a statement from the Ministry of Lands and Water Affairs dated August 10, 2022 on revised Botswana Land Policy 2019 Part V, Section 58 (i) states that ‘each Motswana will be eligible for allocation of one residential plot at an area of their choice within the country, on both state land and tribal land.

The statement advises member of the public that residential tribal land will only be allocated to those who are on the waiting list and have not been directly allocated residential plots on tribal land anywhere in the country.

However, Mr Modisagape clarified that Part V, Section (ii) states that ‘additional plots may be acquired through the private market (purchasing), inheritance, or any other legitimate channels recognised in the law and policy.

“The Act allows people to possess and be allocated as many purchased plots as they can afford, inherit, or donated on tribal land.”

He said as much as the land board had not directly allocated one a plot, it still owed them a plot irrespective of the number of plots you owned through purchase or other means other than direct allocation. Ends