Time flies with great content! Renew in to keep enjoying all our premium content.
Prime
Chequered year closes with hopes for historical land injustice claimants
2025 was a pivotal year for Kenya’s land sector, with new taxes, contentious allocations, fraud crackdowns, and progress on historical land injustices.
In January 2025, Kenyans woke to the reality that all rateable land, except freehold agricultural land, would be subject to annual land rates under the National Rating Act, which received presidential assent in December 2024. While county governments welcomed the law, many freehold landowners bristled at the levy.
In February, President William Ruto announced plans to buy land from absentee landlords along the coast, tasking Cabinet Secretary Alice Wahome and senior local leaders with identifying suitable parcels. If handled professionally, the initiative could significantly improve livelihoods for the landless.
March brought fresh controversy as the President acceded to the allocation of a public military land in Roysambu, Nairobi, to a church – raising eyebrows given the Land Act 2010’s strict procedures for public land allocation.
The same month, eight suspects were arrested in connection with a syndicate that sold non-existent land and forged title deeds, underscoring the need for vigilance in property transactions.
In May, the World Bank Conference on Land and Poverty convened in Washington DC, offering governments and stakeholders a platform to showcase innovative land governance initiatives. Kenya must continue leveraging such forums to secure financing and partnerships for land sector projects.
August saw news of a luxury camp being constructed in Ngong Forest – a matter that remains under scrutiny. Meanwhile, September marked the stalled appointment of the third cohort of National Land Commission (NLC) commissioners, creating a temporary policy leadership gap. By November, all commissioners except Esther Murugi and Tiya Galgalo, whose terms run another year, had exited office.
October brought a significant boost with the assent of the National Land Commission (Amendment) Act 2025. The amendment extends the NLC’s mandate to investigate and recommend redress for historical land injustices, and review irregularly or illegally allocated public land grants, for another five years.
In November, the Conference on Land Policy in Africa convened in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with luminaries like Supreme Court Judge Smokin Wanjala and Environment and Land Court Judge Oscar Angote attending. Kenya’s NLC team joined, exchanging research, experiences, and lessons on land governance with counterparts across the continent.
The year closed with the NLC recommending that Kakuzi Ltd surrender 3,200 acres in Murang’a County for resettlement of vulnerable people, following a hearing on historical land injustice claims – a milestone in the ongoing quest for equitable land ownership.
The writer is a consultant on land governance.
Unlock a world of exclusive content today!Unlock a world of exclusive content today!
