Feed the Future Tanzania Land Tenure Assistance (LTA) FY’21 Annual Report

The program is implemented by DAI Global, LLC, under Contract No. IQC: AID-OAA-I-12-00031/AID-621-T0-16-00005, with the support of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The program's main objective is to assist the Government of Tanzania in improving the regulatory framework for land transactions, particularly in the context of customary land. During the reporting fiscal year, LTA adopted a practical strategy to expedite its activities, which included streamlining the sequencing of field activities, expanding its field work to conduct Village Land Use Planning (VLUP) and adjudication in additional villages, and deploying more field teams to speed up the execution of the VLUP and CCRO delivery process. This strategy proved effective in making up time in developing VLUPs and completing the systematic village land adjudication and registration process. LTA achieved positive results from its contribution to improving the regulatory framework for village land registration. A notable achievement was the adoption and gazettement of the Village Land (Amendment) Regulation, which addresses regulatory gaps that existed in relation to village land transactions. LTA played a prominent role in conceptualizing, developing, and lobbying for the adoption and issuance of the regulation. In FY '21, LTA completed the process of systematic village land registration in 20 villages in the Iringa, Mbarali, and Kilolo districts and printed and registered a total of 24,290 Certificates of Customary Right of Occupancy (CCROs). LTA also assisted in demarcating and adjudicating 25,616 land parcels in 19 villages in Iringa, Mbarali, and Kilolo Districts. Additionally, LTA assisted the LTA-NGO to adjudicate and demarcate in aggregate 2,642 land parcels in Ilongo and Ibaga villages of Mbarali and Makete District Councils. LTA made significant progress with respect to village land use plans and implementing the process of systematic village land adjudication and registration in the districts of Iringa, Kilolo, and Mbarali. LTA completed the process of developing Village Land Use Plans for eight villages, including Kihanga, Isupilo, Nyabula, and Wangama in Iringa district, Ukwama, Mtamba, and Azimio Mswiswi in Mbarali district, and Winome in Kilolo district. LTA also worked to obtain District Council approval of VLUPs prepared for Iringa District villages. During FY '21, LTA conducted and completed the public display of the results of the demarcation and adjudication process in 19 villages, in collaboration with 15 village land offices of the Iringa district, two Mbarali district villages, and two Kilolo district villages. LTA also completed textual and spatial data editing for 20 villages to reflect the outcome of the public display and submitted the edited list of claims for these villages to the Authorized Land Officer, who approved for CCRO printing and registration. Following the printing and registering of the CCROs in FY '21, LTA, in collaboration with District Land Offices and Village Offices, organized CCRO issuance ceremonies in 24 villages. Accordingly, a total of 14,583 CCROs were delivered to the 24 Village Land Registries. In the 24 CCRO issuance ceremonies, a total of 5,793 CCROs were collected by village residents. LTA encountered three categories of disputes during the reporting period: disputes between individual landholders, disputes between groups in a village, and boundary disputes between neighboring villages. Most of the first category of disputes arose during the demarcation and adjudication process and after the results of adjudication and demarcation were posted for public display on the walls of the Village Office. The disputes that arose between individual villagers mainly involved cases of multiple claims and boundary disputes. Many of the disputes between individual parties were resolved through LTA facilitation and using community-based mechanisms. LTA also facilitated the resolution of a longstanding land conflict between the pastoralist and farming communities of Mfyome village through mediation and conciliation using local mechanisms.