Kitengela residents receive long-awaited land titles after decades of disputes

Residents of Kitengela during the ceremony receive their long-awaited land title deeds at the municipal offices.

Residents of Kitengela during a ceremony to receive their long-awaited land title deeds at the municipal offices.. [Peterson Githaiga, Standard]

Residents of Kitengela town received their lease title deeds over the weekend, ending decades of uncertainty caused by double allocations from the defunct Olkejuado County Council.

The county government of Kajiado and the National Land Commission (NLC) have been issuing title deeds across the county to resolve longstanding land disputes.

Councillors under the former council often allocated the same plot to different people, leaving residents unable to use their land.

At the Kitengela Municipality offices, landowners gathered to collect their documents.

“After equipping the land owners with these important documents, they will now be able to utilise their land properly. One can even walk into a bank and get a loan,” noted Philip Murkuku, officer in charge of lands at the county government of Kajiado.

Murkuku added that the documents will give residents the security they need to invest, access credit, and grow small enterprises.

“They are not just pieces of paper—they are tools of economic transformation that expand opportunities for the locals and uplift their households,” he said.

Saida Isak, NLC county coordinator, said that since last year, 373 letters of allotment have been processed for Kitengela, enabling beneficiaries to receive their certificates of lease.

“As of late 2025, over 8,000 residents in the entire county have received lease title deeds, addressing long-standing ownership disputes and speeding up development across 52 townships,” noted Isak.

Kajiado County Director of Revenue Timaiyo Moinket urged landowners who have not yet collected their documents to do so.

“We are appealing to those who have yet to collect their documents to visit our officers. We are moving with speed to make sure that everyone gets his or her own documents,” he said.

James Muloki, a resident of Noonkopir village, said he and his family had waited more than 30 years to receive their plot documents.

“Today is a big day for my family. We have been waiting for this particular document since we were allocated our plot by the then Olkejuado County Council. Since then, we have not been able to utilise it due to a lack of proper documents,” stated Muloki.