Ministry engages editors on amended land laws
Ministry of Lands has said the media is crucial in raising awareness of the new land-related laws enacted in July this year to ensure that Malawians are familiar with the processes.
Speaking during a meeting in Blantyre for editors drawn from various media houses in the Southern Region, Deputy Minister of Lands Deus Gumbwa said the new laws were signed by President Lazarus Chakwera in May.
He said the new laws are packaged in a language which some citizens cannot understand, as such the media will have to reach them with easy-to-use information.
Said Gumbwa: “About six land-related Bills were passed in 2016 and these are Land Act, Land Survey Act, Physical Planning Act, Registered Land Act, Land Acquisition and Compensation Act, and the Customary Land Act.
“However, there were some grey areas which needed review. That’s why these laws have been amended to the advantage of citizens.”
He explained that, for instance, with the help of Shire Valley Transformation Programme (SVTP), the ministry is piloting a land registration process in the twin Shire Valley districts of Chikwawa and Nsanje while Agriculture Commercialisation (Agcom) is implementing the same in other areas.
“We are doing the same in Phalombe, Nkhotakota, Kasungu, Nkhata Bay and Karonga districts but we are happy that people out there are receiving the issue well,” he said.
Among the amended laws is the Land Survey Act which states that any person who wants a survey of any kind should first notify the Surveyor General and later surrender the findings to that office according to Section 42. Those who violate this law will be fined between K500 000 and K1 million.
The Land Act, on the other hand, restricts selling of undeveloped land to individuals, a trend now common among real estate agents.
During the meeting, Ministry of Lands Principal Secretary Davie Chilonga said a Bill is being developed to address the issue of sale of vacant plots. He said the law will soon catch up with the estate agents.
“Most estate agents are selling vacant land and they are doing it illegally because even the land they are selling they do not have titles. Very shortly the law will catch up with them,” he said.
Chilonga also explained that government does not sale public land per se for developments, but asks successful applicants to pay development charges for the construction of roads and electricity as well as water utilities infrastructure.
The meeting was sponsored by the SVTP who are piloting land registration in the area of Traditional Authority Kasisi and Senior Chief Malemia in Chikwawa and Nsanje districts respectively.
