BUJUMBURA June 3rd (ABP) – The Institute of Administration and Land Mapping at the University of Burundi in collaboration with the association Jami ASBL, organized on Tuesday May 31, 2022, a workshop on economic development and governance of expropriations in Burundi, a check by ABP revealed.
The Dean of the Institute of Administration and Land Mapping, Mr. Emery Nukuri, said that this workshop was organized after noting that land governance in general and the governance of land expropriations in particular, has an impact on the economic development of the country, and with the aim of seeing how expropriation in Burundi can contribute to economic development and the protection of the people.
Moreover, he added that at the level of governance, all the State lands are not all known on the national territory, they are not well delimited and the State does not have a title deed. If the State has a project, instead of using its land domain, proceeds to the expropriation of people because it does not know its land domain, he added.
The Jami association and the Institute of Administration and Land Mapping have asked the State to make an inventory of these lands, delimit them and register them, which would allow it to have information on the land available, their use and to carry out the projects on its own lands.
That delimitation and mapping of State lands would prevent individuals from appropriating these lands and avoid compensation in the event of expropriation for public utility.
In terms of expropriation, it would be good for the State to plan the expropriations to be carried out during the year or over five years at the communal, provincial or national level, which would allow it to plan a substantial budget and allow harmonious development. The State should carry out expropriations sometimes to plan several infrastructures, in particular social housing, high-rise construction, land use, namely the land reserved for agriculture in order to be able to feed a population which grows from time to time, which will allow economic development, according to the dean of the Institute of administration and land mapping.
Mr. Nukuri further indicated that they are satisfied with their collaboration with the minister in charge of land management, the presidency, civil society, researchers but also journalists, to advance the issue and so that Burundi arrives at stable, planned, budgeted governance, capable of being subject to monitoring and evaluation for economic development in Burundi.
He thanked the government for having updated the compensation rates, which makes it possible to protect the people, but here too reasonable rates are needed. The State will also have to arrange for the compensation to be paid beforehand, which will eventually allow it to relocate the expropriated persons.