Kajiado's digital land reforms praised for strengthening ownership, curbing corruption

 

Kajiado land CECM Hamilton Parseina being shown round the new digital land hub office in Kajiado town. [Peterson Githaiga, Standard]

Digital reforms in Kajiado County’s land sector have helped curb corruption and reduce land ownership disputes over the past decade, county officials have said.

The reforms, which include digitisation of the land registry, introduction of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and issuance of system-generated lease titles, have played a critical role in strengthening land ownership safeguards and improving planning.

The changes are being implemented under the county spatial plan as Kajiado seeks to attract investment and cope with rapid urban development.

Speaking during a press conference outside his Kajiado office, Lands County Executive Committee Member Hamilton Parseina said residents will next week have an opportunity to access land services outside government offices during the county scorecard forum.

“Land services will be offered on-site during the county scorecard forum next week. This will allow residents to see first-hand how digital transformation has helped reduce corruption in the land sector,” Parseina said.

He, however, acknowledged that the department still faces challenges because land administration has not been fully devolved from the national government.

“There are still some teething problems because the land function has not been fully devolved to the county government,” Parseina said.

His sentiments were echoed by County Registrar Jonathan Oseur, who said the department had moved away from the traditional system of physically filing land records and ownership documents.

“We have successfully transitioned from physical filing of land records and ownership documents to system-generated documents with security features,” Oseur said.

Kajiado land CECM Hamilton Parseina being shown round the new digital land hub office in Kajiado town. [Peterson Githaiga, Standard]

He said the digital system was helping strengthen the security of land records while reducing opportunities for manipulation of documents.

County Surveyor Joshua Lemaikai, in his remarks, said all land maps in the county had been digitised, improving land management and planning.

“All land maps have been digitised; this is particularly important for Kajiado because the county operates largely on general boundaries,” Lemaikai said.

He added that the digitisation process had enabled the county to establish third-order controls, which help define and secure its area of jurisdiction.

The county has also introduced other measures aimed at controlling urban development while protecting rangelands and environmentally sensitive areas.

Officials said the measures are particularly important in areas surrounding the Amboseli ecosystem, where rapid development needs to be balanced with the protection of grazing land and the environment.

The county government says continued digitisation of land services will improve efficiency, strengthen accountability and provide residents and investors with more secure land records.