Abstract
Over the last two decades, the demand for land in Africa has increased dramatically, due to various factors including population growth, growing interest in farm land from both foreign and local investors, the steady economic growth experienced over the last decade and half. These factors have created immense pressure on the available land resources, especially in areas surrounding major towns and cities, and areas close to developed social and economic infrastructure. In most African countries, the growing pressure on land is directed towards customary land which still constitute the largest portion of the land. In Zambia, as in many other countries, the growing demand for land has brought the policy and practice of converting customary land into leasehold tenure (privatisation) into the spotlight. While this policy is part of the Zambian government’s economic growth and rural development strategy (of ‘opening up’ the countryside to investors), there are huge challenges that this is creating. This paper examines the power relations around customary land in the context of the growing demand for land. The paper argues that the changing power and social relations raise serious questions about the future of customary land and the social fabric of rural communities.
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Notes
- 1.
There is a more recent draft policy on land which was circulated at the beginning of 2016 for comments, but has not yet been finalised.
- 2.
- 3.
Although Barotseland became a British Protectorate, it retained autonomy over the administration of land under the Lozi paramount Chief Lewanika as stipulated in the 1898 Barotse Agreement between Lewanika and John Cecil Rhodes; see Bruce and Dorner (1982).
- 4.
The BSA Co. was a chartered company that administered Northern Rhodesia on behalf of the British Government from 1889 to 1924.
- 5.
- 6.
It must be noted here that it is not only the state that is promoting land alienation but some traditional leaders are actively engaging in land deals, which has created conflict in communities between the people and traditional leaders (Sitko 2010).
- 7.
See ‘US, UAE firms eye Zambian farming land’ (Reuters Africa, 12 June 2009), http://af.reuters.com/article/investingNews/idAFJOE55B0MB20090612, accessed on 28 June 2017.
- 8.
There are reports that most of the investors are actually refusing land far away from developed infrastructure and preferring land which is closer to communication facilities, mainly rail and road routes (German et al. 2011).
- 9.
Although it is widely held that conversion of customary land to leasehold title began with the 1995 Lands Act, customary land conversion has been ongoing since 1985, when the Administrative Circular No. 1 of 1985, was published, which allowed conversion of customary, conditional upon approval by the Chief and the district councils (Chizyuka et al. 2006). There are no recent figures on the rate of conversion. Figures for the period 1985–97 suggest a sharp rise of fivefold (see Fig. 1, below).
- 10.
- 11.
One example is of a South African investor who acquired land at no cost in Chief Nkanya’s area, along the Luangwa Valley, to develop a Safari lodge, only to sell the land 2 years later for US$70,000, without even touching the land; see Brown (2005: 92), for more such examples.
- 12.
There have been several stories, especially in the print media, reporting that an increasing number of traditional leaders are being bribed into selling away land to foreign investors who have money. One example is an article in the Pots Newspaper of Monday (10 January 2011), which claims that many chiefs have become corrupt and selfish.
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Chitonge, H. (2019). Customary Land in Zambia: The New Scramble and the Evolving Socio-political Relations. In: Moyo, S., Jha, P., Yeros, P. (eds) Reclaiming Africa. Advances in African Economic, Social and Political Development. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-5840-0_10
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