Have we lost the people?

The case of civil society and land policy advocacy in Zambia…

By Bruce Chooma

SINCE the attainment of independence in 1964, Zambia has failed to put in place a comprehensive land policy. All land reforms after 1964 were triggered by specific needs at each particular time.

A lot of concern is rising from various quarters inside and outside Zambia on the dwindling voice of civil society in Zambia’s governance space. Such a strong voice is necessary to hold government in check and accountable to its people as it is a conduit for the amplification of citizen voices.

This article seeks to reflect on the strategies employed by civil society over the years in championing the rights of Zambians to access and control land. This is premised on the fact that, the land question is essentially what the fight for independence was about. That the land is the heritage of the Zambian and generations of Zambians to come must be assured that concrete steps were taken to preserve their land for their inheritance with full recognition of its intrinsic value.

Is civil society losing its relevance as politicians and traditional leaders run the land policy debate? Who will stand for the people? How will the legitimate voice of the downtrodden, poor and defenseless who are being driven off land they have lived for decades be heard?

As chiefs walk out of dialogue meetings with government on land policy and convene their own platforms, what strategic position can civil society play to hold both government and traditional leaders accountable to their interests? It is quite clear that the battle for the land policy is a battle for power and control? It is clear that the traditional leaders may not always act in the best interests of their subjects and yet from a civil society perspective, they present the last hope for the poor to access and control land.

I wrote about the chaotic scene of land administration in Zambia here in 2014.

The government recently sought to complete the land policy formulation process through a national validation process. The validation meeting was unsuccessful following a walkout by the traditional leaders. The draft national land policy primarily seeks to promote equitable access to land to all the people of Zambia on state and customary land, for both poor and the wealthy and irrespective of gender.

The policy seeks to strengthen land tenure security and enhance sustainable and productive management of land resources by upholding transparent and cost-effective systems of administration. The policy provides a framework for better conservation and protection of ecologically sensitive areas, within and outside protected areas and a more cost-effective and efficient settlement of land disputes

The leading civil society voice in the land policy development process is the Zambia Land Alliance (ZLA,) a network of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) advocating for fair policies, laws and administrative systems in the land sector, that take into consideration the interests of rural, urban poor and marginalized communities. ZLA was founded in 1997 as a response to the land reforms of the government in the 1990s. It has been ZLA’s considered position that the country requires a good land policy to be put in place in order to address this key development area.

ZLA has established a National Land Advocacy Committee, whose mandate is to influence the change of policies, laws and institutional arrangements as these relate to the land sector in the country. A specific Land Policy sub- committee has been established under the National Land Advocacy Committee and its role is to promote ZLA’s positions on the land policy. ZLA has additionally held a number of strategic meetings with key stakeholders such as the church mother bodies, the media and other civil society organizations, with the intention of increasing the base of support for ZLA advocacy.

The dynamics around the management of land in Zambia have changed significantly in the past decade. Central to this is the ever rising appetite to acquire land by private capitalist interests on both state and customary land. This is to a large degree perpetuated by government open market policies that are premised on the maximization of foreign driven investment. The current trend in urban development is the construction of shopping malls on every street which in the end push local small traders out of business as they cannot compete with cheaper foreign imported goods. This is beginning to result in loss of jobs and a shrinking local productive capacity.

Another critical phenomenon is the emergence of private land developers who have acquired vast amounts of land and with minimal value addition offloading small “serviced” plots at exorbitant prices.

They have gone on a mission to purchase vast land from traditional leaders in peri-urban areas, others bought farms that were on title and changed successfully applied to land use, and others acquired vast land for construction of lodges but ended up changing use and demarcating it for re-sale at prices most Zambians can’t afford. These developments present an injustice and de-service to the citizenry who have to buy back their own land from third parties.

Why is it easier for private entities with capital interests to acquire land and later exploit citizens financially? Citizens especially in urban areas cannot access land from their own government affordably. This is a scandal.

Civil society may need to change its approaches to advocacy for people centred land policy reforms and begin to think of engaging in more robust and innovative ways to raise demand for the right to land by citizens.

CSO leaders may have to invest more in public awareness and education on the value of land and sensitise the public on what is going on.

Civil society needs to improve its documentation and dissemination of research findings around issues of land in Zambia. Powerful animations, video and picture documentaries must be used to demonstrate the impact of an unjust system of land administration on the poor.

There is need to demand for concrete actions that can be taken to ensure the empowerment of citizens to not only access land but to have capacity to put it to productive use. The demand for land policy should be linked to other related policies such as a National Housing Policy and policies on trade and investment, agriculture and environment.

Civil society should be clear and categorical in their demands and approaches towards land reforms. Old and tired advocacy approaches won’t work in this complex struggle. The technical know-how is important but the most critical asset civil society has is the voice of the poor. Have we lost the people? Have we forgotten that the voice of the people is the voice of God?

There is need for mass action and a truly people driven process to resurrect public debate on land. There is a sense of desperation and hunger among Zambians for empowerment and independent living which is not supported by functional government programmes. Civil society must stand up and prove its relevance in these changing times.

ENDS

The author is Programmes Coordinator at Disability Rights Watch and member of the National Board of Zambia Land of Alliance