Land administration practices in Tanzania: a replica of past mistakes

Deficiencies in Land Administration and its Implications on land Title Delivery in 8 Local Government Authorities of Dodoma Region in Tanzania

This paper examines deficiencies in performing land administration functions in Local Government Authorities (LGAs) in Dodoma Tanzania. All 8 LGAs of Dodoma region were earmarked and through in-depth interviews and observation of land administration practices data on performance in relation to the available resources were collected. An interpretative analysis followed thereafter on predefined functions of different actors as per regulatory frameworks. The findings suggest a relatively high rate of resource and technological deficiencies in almost all LGAs. The deficiency in human resource was however, not directly related to titling performance in five of the eight LGAs an indicator that there is a limited link between physical human resources and performance. This paper advocates for building competence on the existing pool of human resources by equipping them with the necessary skills and competence in planning, surveying and land registration rather than hiring of new worker of almost the same calibre. Availability of adequate basic land information infrastructures could as well facilitate achieving an adequate performance in terms of land titling and related transactions. To the general public, education and training programs on relevant laws and policies are still needed in order to extend the level of awareness on best land administration practices.