How Rwanda uses blockchain technology to ease land transactions

The Government of Rwanda on Monday, November 1, made a presentation on how the country is steadily building its capacities in the land administration fields. At the Conference on Land Policy in Africa (CLPA) that is underway in Kigali, Rwandan officials showcased different initiatives like the paperless land transactions, e-titling, equal rights to land between men and women and how Rwanda embarked on development of national land-use plan and subsequent detailed plans to ensure the alignment of different land uses. Delegates were taken through the step-by-step process of Rwanda’s latest innovation, the Ubutaka App. Ubutaka App is a web-based, paperless registration application designed for use by land managers at the sector or notaries, and registrars, to increase efficiency, security, and accessibility of land transfers by voluntary sale. Athanase Akumuntu, a business analyst in the Ministry of Environment, told The New Times that it is an innovative application that incorporates the use of a fingerprint scanner, signature pad, and camera (for the collection of biometric data against non-repudiation); Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) for identification of notaries and Registrars; and a public blockchain for safekeeping of land-based transactions in an open and transparent manner. PKI is a technology for authenticating users and devices digitally. It allows one or more trusted parties to digitally sign documents certifying that a particular cryptographic key belongs to a particular user or device, hence making the key an identity for the user in digital networks ensuring the non-repudiation on documents digitally signed. As noted, Blockchain, a system of recording information in a way that makes it difficult or impossible to change, hack, or cheat the system, is key in the process. Akumuntu said Blockchain is a technology that uses cryptography to create records that can be agreed upon by various parties. “Blockchain technology enables the creation of an open, distributed ledger that records transactions efficiently in a verifiable, accessible, transparent, auditable, and permanent manner.” “The land transactions recorded on the Rwandan blockchain can be accessed using the unique parcel identifier (UPI) and with the use of block chain technology, we expect to have a transparent, more secure and temper-proof land registry.” In November 2018, Akumuntu said, the Rwanda Land Management and Use Authority (RLMUA) and Rwanda Information Society Authority (RISA) entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Medici Land Governance (MLG) to develop a paperless, secure, and fully interoperable system, later named Ubutaka App to implement paperless registration starting by the transfer of voluntary sale transaction. The pilot project is now being conducted in Gasabo district, since April 2021. “Ubutaka is seamlessly integrated with Irembo, the National ID Agency (NIDA), and the Land Administration Information System (LAIS) to securely transmit Rwandan citizen information so that buyers and sellers need only to make a single visit to a notary office. The applicant, seller and buyer, need to use Irembo to initiate a transaction where they will fill some forms in Irembo platform and will be given a billing number for the service fee. “They can pay through mobile money or using VISA card. The notary gives them the appointment, by sms, and at arrival, the notary will no longer need to print out the sale agreement nor use stamps to approve the sale of land. Instead, all will be approved in Ubutaka App and signed using PKI while the applicants will sign using the signing pad as well as providing their fingerprints and pictures.” According to Akumuntu, the transaction is pushed to LAIS and once the Registrar of Land Titles has approved the application, the transaction is recorded on block chain only in few seconds. The step by step process On the first step, Akumuntu said, the seller initiates the transfer through Irembo and pays the transfer fee. Irembo then sends the land transfer information including the parcel, seller and buyers details to Ubutaka App. On step two, the notary schedules an appointment in Irembo and both buyer and seller get notified, by SMS, when exactly they will go to the notary’s office. On arrival, the notary will double-check their identity as Ubutaka App is integrated with NIDA, and verify land ownership using data from the land registry also integrated with Ubutaka App. The notary will then take signatures, fingerprints and photos of the seller and buyer before signing with PKI and hitting the “send to LAIS” button. At the last step, the registrar will receive applications sent to LAIS through Ubutaka App and examine them before approval. After approval, the transaction details are recorded on blockchain for future verification and record-keeping. With Ubutaka App, it takes a single day for applicants to get their land title, which makes service delivery even more efficient.

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How Rwanda uses blockchain technology to ease land transactions