Use of GIS to manage community-based land transactions: Case Study: Kirinyaga Central District

Abstract

The elements of Land Administration in Kenya are very fragmented and independently operated within the Ministry of Lands. During institutional reform there is opportunity to provide a much more integrated Land Administration service to the citizens, especially at the district level through the formation of ‘one-stop-shops’, through the integration and rationalization of the existing land administration and land rights delivery systems. This project report highlights the benefits offered through the application of GIS in management of community based land transactions. Applying GIS technology in the management of land transactions enables information to be managed more effectively and productively, and therefore providing the opportunity to undertake new tasks. Improvements are shown in the capture, storage, accuracy, completeness, integration, maintenance and analysis of data, which consequently improves the quality and dissemination of information. However, GIS has complex software systems, which require experience and expertise to utilize effectively. Customizing GIS provides a solution, by offering user friendly interface for the operations and functions of a GIS, which reduce the skills required for obtaining their output. The study involved assessment of land transactions operations in Survey and Land Registration departments of the Ministry of Lands, in Kirinyaga Central District. The results of this assessment and the user needs and requirements established, were used to the development of this system. The project objectively addressed the land issues through development of a GIS database that the community can use to find relevant land information. The database gives information about qualified professionals within the district as well as land buyers and sellers by querying the database. This is aimed at eliminating quacks who act as land surveyors or land management agents. The database allows spatial data analysis for instance, deriving a suitability map about land parcels locations according to requirements of the interested buyer or seller. The system answers queries on land information on parcels based on the user needs. The digital map database was developed through manual digitization process of analogue maps that involved: Entering the spatial data, Entering the attribute data, Spatial and attribute data verification, and linking the spatial to the attribute data. The results were analyzed through querying of the database and derivative mapping for generation of the suitability maps based on the user needs and requirements.