Lands Ministry embarks on training Acholi leaders on land-related issues
The main objectives of the sensitization meeting are to inform major stakeholders on the various land laws, the process of registration of customary land, and land-related matters.
Gulu: The Ministry of Land, Housing, and Urban Development has revealed that they are embarking on training leaders in the Acholi sub-region on land-related issues.
The training came following numerous concerns raised to the ministry by the leaders from Acholi regarding land.
The communication released by the Ministry of Land outlines the categories of people lined up for the training as political leaders, technical officers in the district land office, police, judicial officers, resident district commissioners, chief administrative officers, and traditional leaders from the cities, municipalities, and districts in northern Uganda.
The training will take place on February 26, 2024, in Gulu City, funded under the USMID-AF project.
The ministry, which includes, among other things, planning and opening the boundaries of their land, these areas are associated with unregistered customary land and boundary disputes.
The main objectives of the sensitization meeting are to inform major stakeholders on the various land laws, the process of registration of customary land, and land-related matters.
The ministry is hopeful that both the landlords and tenants will be on various tenure systems, physical planning issues, and the responsibilities of the land management institution, and the participant shall be imploring alternative dispute resolution.
On January 20, 2024, residents of Cubu A and B cells and Tegwana South Ward Laroo-Pece Divisions in Gulu City requested the office of the division land board organize a sensitization meeting of the members of the community on land ownership, titling, and surveying, something local leaders say the majority of the community members are not well conversant with.
The request was tabled with the division authorities last week during community Barraza in Cubu A and B to sensitize locals about the processes involved in opening a community access road by the division authority.
Omona Walter Kato, the LC1 Chairperson of Cubu A and B Cell, says locals are not aware of many laws and policies regarding land acquisition, ownership, and land usage, especially in the city where a lot of activities that require legal guidance are happening.
The local leaders have tasked the division land board with taking them through the nitty-gritty of getting their land surveyed, among other requirements.
Kato reveals that some locals who claimed that their land was surveyed and titled recently got disappointed after it was established that all the acclaimed tiled land was issued fake mark stones, which are not reflected in the Ministry of Land database.
Otim Geoffrey, the Laroo-Pece division mayor, advises the community to always use the government surveyor if they want to conduct preliminary land surveys so that they are not dubbed by some private fake surveyors who are money-oriented.
He encourages the community to conduct the preliminary survey and follow all the procedures so that they are issued authentic documents on their land by the responsible authorities like the Uganda Land Board, the Ministry of Land Housing and Urban Development, and the Uganda Land Commission.
However, Martin Oruu, Chairperson of the Laroo-Pece Division Land Board, says they have in their work plans schedules to conduct community sensitization on issues about land, especially land surveys and land titling, but due to financial constraints, they are unable to conduct the sensitization.
Oruu rallies the development partners, especially media houses, to give them airtime on the radio so that they can constantly sensitize the community on land issues.
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