15 000 farms surveyed for issuance of title deeds

Source: 15 000 farms surveyed for issuance of title deeds – herald

Theseus Mauruki Shambare

Herald Correspondent

ABOUT 15 000 farms have so far been surveyed under the Government’s land tenure programme, paving way for the issuance of title deeds as authorities accelerate efforts to provide secure and bankable tenure to beneficiaries of the Land Reform Programme.

Addressing the media on yesterday, Land Tenure Stakeholders Engagement Committee chairperson Cde Happison Muchechetere said Government was now processing title deeds for surveyed farms.

He urged farmers whose land has not yet been surveyed to register at their nearest district lands offices before travelling to the One-Stop Centre in Harare.

Cde Muchechetere said surveying remained a prerequisite for the issuance of title deeds.

“So far, there are between 10 000 and 15 000 farms that have been completely surveyed and we are dealing with those farms,” said Cde Muchechetere.

“What we need to do now is that all those people with farms that have not been surveyed, go to your nearest lands office and register with the officials.”

He said the registration would enable the Government to establish the number of farms requiring surveys in each district and deploy survey teams accordingly.

“This will make it easy for Government to know how many farms need to be surveyed in which district and the process would be quickened by us knowing whether your farm has been surveyed or not,” he said.

Cde Muchechetere said the One-Stop Centre in Harare had been inundated with farmers travelling from across the country to apply for title deeds, only for many to discover that their farms had not yet been surveyed.

“We have noticed that our One-Stop Centre is now inundated with everybody else coming to try to register for the title deeds,” he said.

“We have people coming from as far as Binga and Mutare, but when most of them come here, it is found that their farms are not surveyed. We cannot issue a title deed on an unsurveyed farm.”

He urged farmers to first visit their nearest district lands offices to verify the status of their farms and register for surveying, saying this would save time, reduce travel costs and speed up processing.

Cde Muchechetere said the title deed programme, launched by President Mnangagwa, is designed to conclude Zimbabwe’s Land Reform Programme by providing beneficiaries with secure land tenure.

He said Government expects approximately 360 000 A1 farmers and 24 000 A2 farmers to ultimately receive title deeds.

Cde Muchechetere said farms occupied by multiple beneficiaries must be surveyed as a single unit before individual title deeds can be processed, adding that all beneficiaries on the same farm need to participate in the survey exercise.

He said officials from the Land Tenure Implementation Committee would also register farmers during provincial agricultural shows to decentralise the programme and improve access to services.

The decentralised registration drive is expected to accelerate the issuance of title deeds while easing pressure on the Harare One-Stop Centre and bringing services closer to farming communities.