Expanded mandate

The soft spoken Zachariah Mwangi Njeru is the new sheriff at the Lands Ministry. This is now a new look Ministry, with a much expanded mandate. It hosts three key departments. The State Department for Lands and Physical Planning, the State Department for Housing and Urban Development and the State Department for Public Works. Lands and Physical Planning carries the traditional land delivery units of land policy, land administration, physical planning, adjudication and settlement, surveying and mapping and land registration. Housing and Urban development drives housing policy, government housing, affordable housing, slum upgrading and our urban planning policy. Public Works is responsible for building and construction policy, standards and codes. It’s also responsible for supplies, procurement and the management of government buildings.

One easily appreciates the power the Ministry packs. It’s responsible for the registration and regulation of a wide group of professionals responsible for the built environment. These include land surveyors, valuers, estate agents, planners, architects, quantity surveyors and building surveyors. The National Housing Corporation and the National Construction Authority are under this Ministry too. So Cabinet Secretary Mwangi Njeru is likely to find himself under immense pressure from the public, professionals, contractors and county governments who seek services, or provide professional support, through this Ministry.

Putting these key State Departments under one cabinet portfolio has merits and demerits. The obvious merit is that a country cannot successfully deliver housing without secure land rights. Therefore, having the unit responsible for the delivery and administration of land and that responsible for provision of housing under a common command creates good synergy. The downside is that the department responsible for land delivery has always been under much public and political pressure. It’s therefore likely to divert the attention of the key policy drivers from the other departments. The Cabinet Secretary and his Principal Secretaries will hence need to ensure that time and resources available are equitably shared.

Priority commitments

CS Njeru will find himself saddled with a set of high pressure priorities. During campaigns, Kenya Kwanza committed to deepen the settlement of people through the purchase of land from private persons. The landless, particularly from the Kenya Coast, Central and Rift Valley regions, will be waiting. The new regime has also committed to the provision of affordable housing across the country. This too will be a priority to watch. But it’s important to point out that the management of our over 11 million title deeds, which underpin the tenure security for the much needed housing and urban development, present a nightmare unless these are in soft form for easy custody, retrieval and dissemination. This is the objective behind the new ardhisasa online system.

This column has previously decried the need to revisit the policy and technical aspects of this system in order to resolve user concerns and optimize uptake. This should inform his immediate attention. Once successfully tested within Nairobi, national rollout will then be achievable.

Dated: 10th November 2022