High land transfer rate ‘worries’ gov’t
As government pushes the waiting list on land allocation, it has decried the high number of land transfers due to people especially the youth selling their land. Giving an update on land allocation this week, acting deputy permanent secretary in the Ministry of Land Management, Water and Sanitation Services, Fawcus Mmolawa said the government wishes the youth could stop selling land at a high rate.
He said it is worrying that government allocates land to people who quickly move to sell their plots immediately. Mmolawa said recently they allocated land in the Ramotswa region and next thing they saw people advertising their plots on social media. “They were selling the plots at various prices from P100,000 to P200,000. The way the Land Board is being condemned for failing to allocate land, one could wonder why people quickly sell land without giving themselves time to enjoy their land,” he said.
Mmolawa indicated that their wish is to see people owning land and understanding the value of land. He revealed that they have observed that after selling the land, the youth rush to buy cars and other valuables, which are not investable. He said Batswana have always believed that Land Boards are doing nothing when it comes to allocating land. Mmolawa outlined that since March, Land Boards have allocated 12,603 plots across the country therefore they need to be praised for the work.
Mmolawa further pointed out that their goal this year is to allocate 26,000 plots but so far they have allocated 19,000 plots. He said if they do not reach their target, next year, they will allocate at least 100,000 plots. He said as they strive to allocate 100,000 plots, they do not want to see people homeless as a result of land transfers. Mmolawa said they will continue fast tracking land allocation, therefore Batswana should reduce the rate at which they transfer land. “Batswana dispose of their land and next thing they go back to the Land Board to apply for another plot and increase the number of people in the waiting list,” he bemoaned.
Furthermore, Mmolawa said they would like the waiting list to reflect people who seriously want land not people who get land only to transfer it. He said they are moving towards cleaning the waiting list by rejecting people who have sold their land. “They have passed the right to own land; they don’t want it, no wonder they have transferred it,” he highlighted. Mmolawa said unfortunately there are no laws that can prevent someone from selling their land. He said at the moment the only requirement is that land can only be transferred after it has been developed, but people still find ways to bypass that.
For his part, the president of Botswana Association of Tribal Land Authorities Johannes Chenjekwa said they will continue raising awareness about the issue of land transfer because Batswana are continuing to disinherit their own land. “Land is our pride and wealth for us and our children. If we give Motswana land for free like we are doing, it becomes unfortunate when they lose it in the future. The law permits one to get one plot each from tribal land and state land so if they sell that, they will never get a chance to be allocated land,” he said. Chenjekwa said for Batswana to strike out poverty from their lives, they need to protect and preserve their land.