Mozambique’s Land Policy and Land Administration System One of the key aspects of the Mozambican legal framework for land is that Mozambican nationals can acquire tenure rights through inheritance, via peaceful occupation or through customary channels These usufruct tenure rights, known by the Portuguese acronym ‘DUAT’ (Direito de Uso e Aproveitamento da Terra), can be held individually or jointly. The government emphasizes its central role in issuing titles to rights holders that document their rights; most formal land administration functions are carried out at provincial level by the Provincial Services for Geography and Cadastre (SPGC). However, it is extremely difficult and prohibitively expensive for rural Mozambicans to engage with bureaucracies in distant provincial capitals. Multiple trips and significant costs can be involved in requesting a title. The combined financial, bureaucratic and logistical barriers make the process of formal titling a very difficult process. This Policy and Practice Paper captures the lessons from recent initiatives that have attempted to turn this situation on its head and leverage the capacities of local institutions to provide land administration services. These include the local mapping and certification of acquired DUAT rights, resulting in the issuance of locally registered certificates, rather than the formal titles.

Options for Securing Tenure and Documenting Land Rights in Mozambique: A Land Policy & Practice Paper

Resource Key: WCCTQJ8D

Document Type: Report

Creator:

Author:

  • Simon Norfolk
  • Julian Quan
  • Dan Mullins

Creators Name: {mb_resource_zotero_creatorsname}

Place: Chatham, UK

Institution: Natural Resources Institute, University of Greenwich

Date: March 2020

Language:

Mozambique’s Land Policy and Land Administration System One of the key aspects of the Mozambican legal framework for land is that Mozambican nationals can acquire tenure rights through inheritance, via peaceful occupation or through customary channels These usufruct tenure rights, known by the Portuguese acronym ‘DUAT’ (Direito de Uso e Aproveitamento da Terra), can be held individually or jointly. The government emphasizes its central role in issuing titles to rights holders that document their rights; most formal land administration functions are carried out at provincial level by the Provincial Services for Geography and Cadastre (SPGC). However, it is extremely difficult and prohibitively expensive for rural Mozambicans to engage with bureaucracies in distant provincial capitals. Multiple trips and significant costs can be involved in requesting a title. The combined financial, bureaucratic and logistical barriers make the process of formal titling a very difficult process. This Policy and Practice Paper captures the lessons from recent initiatives that have attempted to turn this situation on its head and leverage the capacities of local institutions to provide land administration services. These include the local mapping and certification of acquired DUAT rights, resulting in the issuance of locally registered certificates, rather than the formal titles.

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