Journalists urged to train citzens on land rights

The Media High Council (MHC) has called on media practitioners to effectively contribute towards educating and creating awareness on land ownership and administration among the population.The session was organised with an aim of building the capacity of practicing journalists to report about land related issues from an informed point of view.The council’s Executive Secretary, Emmanuel Mugisha said that equipped with knowledge on land issue, the media will carry out advocacy from an informed point of view.“Land is one of the major issues that lead to disputes in our communities; so this is in line with our programmes to make the media equipped with these matters so as to play their role in national development,” he said.He promised that more similar forums will be organised by the council.During the forum, participants had interactive sessions specifically on the current land reforms the government is undertaking. Discussed among others was the organic land law that government enacted in 2005.The law has seen government demarcate and register landowners to get land tittles through long term lease ownership system.With the system, land owners have title deeds that enable them carry on development activities and use it as security; but the government has authority on it until one obtains the free hold ownership or full ownership.According to the law, the government gives full ownership of land after one acquires the occupation permit and the development assessment indicates that the land has indeed been developed, according to Pothin Muvara, the Deputy Registrar of Land Titles in the Western Province.As one of the facilitators, Muvara highlighted on the step taken before land is registered and land title obtained. He briefly explained on the measures put in place to ensure transparency in the land registration process, achievements, challenges and the circumstances through which land may not be registered.“Before the organic land law was enacted, all the land belonged to the government. And apart from a few who had free hold ownership, people could not use their land as security to access loans from financial institutions,” he said.Civil Society Organisations (CSO`s) especially those working in the field of land were also represented.The Director of Rwanda Initiative for Sustainable Development, Annie Kairaba, thanked MHC for the initiative, calling upon media practitioners to join hands and report, educate and sensitise the population about their land rights.At the end of the forum, it was recommended that there should be mechanisms to strengthen partnership between the media, CSOs and Rwanda Natural Resources Authority (RNRA).

National

Journalists urged to train citzens on land rights