Land Tenure Dynamics and Governance in Africa

Land tenure in Africa is characterised by a complex interplay of statutory and customary systems that shape access to, use of and investment in land. The colonial heritage imposed formal land administration frameworks in parallel with long-standing local norms, producing pluralistic tenure environments where overlapping claims and institutional ambiguities are common. Customary tenure remains the primary mode of landholding in rural areas, granting rights through lineage, community elders or traditional authorities. State-based formalisation efforts—ranging from large-scale cadastral surveys to fit-for-purpose registration—seek to enhance tenure security, support sustainable land use and facilitate credit access, yet often encounter capacity constraints, elite capture and limited uptake. Urbanisation and demographic pressures intensify competition for land, spawning disputes over property boundaries and tenure rights, while gendered norms frequently marginalise women’s claims to land. Recent governance reforms emphasise participatory mapping, digital registry platforms and multi-stakeholder frameworks to reconcile customary practices with statutory law and to promote equitable land distribution. Globally, secure land rights in Africa are pivotal to poverty reduction, food security, biodiversity conservation and resilience to climate change, underscoring the continent’s role in achieving sustainable development goals. Concrete examples—from communal grazing management in the Sahel to peri-urban regularisation schemes in East African cities—illustrate the interdependence of tenure security, local governance and livelihoods.

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Technical terms

Land tenure: The system of rules that defines how land is accessed, used, transferred and governed.

Tenure security: The degree of confidence landholders have that their rights will be recognised, enforced and protected.

Customary tenure: A system of landholding based on long-established community norms, traditions and authorities rather than formal law.

Formalisation: The process of legally recognising and registering land rights to create documented, enforceable interests.

Land governance: The institutional frameworks, policies and procedures that regulate land rights, use and management.

Communal tenure: Collective arrangements where land rights are held and managed by a community or group rather than individuals.

References

1. Localized land tenure registration in Burundi and eastern DR Congo: Contributing to sustainable peace?. Global Environmental Change (2023).
2. Land tenure, food security, gender and urbanization in Northern Ghana. Land Use Policy (2023).
3. Unbundling tenure security and demand for property rights: Evidence from urban Tanzania. Urban Studies (2024).
4. Fit-for-Purpose Land Administration from Theory to Practice: Three Demonstrative Case Studies of Local Land Administration Initiatives in Africa. Land (2021).