ABSTRACT

Land use policies and markets in Africa are significantly different from those operating in many other continents. Many countries in Africa are characterized by reforming property rights institutions and burgeoning property markets. This chapter gives an overview of land use policies and markets in Africa as a whole before focusing on Tanzania and Kenya for a detailed examination of the evolution of land use policies and markets and other developments in the property sector. It will be shown that many African countries share a common land policy and property market evolution path that involves four periods, namely pre-colonial, colonial, post-independence, and post-Cold War. During the first half of the twentieth century, colonial governments introduced formal systems of land administration although they focused much on allocating productive land to settlers and plantation agriculture. Land and property markets started developing during the post-independence period and gained much ground after the end of the Cold War when many countries embarked on institutional reforms. The reforms have significantly enhanced property rights and promoted land and property markets. Market transparency is improving in many countries, thereby attracting international and regional investors. With more reforms of land policies and property markets, Africa will continue attracting more investors from around the world.