Top ten challenges with the Ardhisasa System

The Ardhisasa online system developed to ease land
transactions has been with us for
a few months. As with any new system, its usage comes with some challenges. As anticipated, land
professionals, land owners and other users who have
used the system have had mixed experiences with it.
This ranges from registration,
upgrading of the account, missing files among
others.

Quick read:  Ultimate guide to understanding Ardhisasa

 

While Ardhisasa is an excellent system which
will put Kenya on a global scale in terms of land management, the
challenge like the validity and completeness of
data, stemming from decades of graft in
the Ministry
and improper storage of land records are some of the challenges that the
newly launched system is facing. There are cases
where some title deeds have been
allocated on
road reserves and other categories of public some files are missing and 
others have deteriorated with time making it
difficult to ascertain ownership
Therefore, with the launch of a new system,
there are usually adoption challenges. In 
the immediate the following are the anticipated
challenges.

1.    Initial delay.

While the digitalized land recording system aim was
streamline land transactions and
ownership
easing the frustrations of property owners and buyers such as queueing for
long hours at land offices countrywide, there is a
big delay in the initial stages. Delays in
processing
requests for account upgrades for its members and lack of clarity in
processing transactions to Nairobi properties that are offline

2.    Illiteracy

By registration to the system, a user is deemed to
have accepted the terms and
conditions and will equally be bound by the
same. This includes willingness to use the
system.
However, the system can only benefit the people who can use the computer or
phones, leaving many Kenyans
exposed in the hand of the conmen.

3.    Restricted searches:

With limited searches on the Ardhisasa platform,
the public, investors and
practicing professionals and even Kenyans in general will have
difficulties where they seek to
conduct official searches without the
proprietors’ consent. Valuers and Banks will for
instance face
difficulties in searching and doing due diligence for properties targeted for
forced sale by lending institutions. Owners to such
properties are unlikely to give
permission for searches to be conducted
against their properties.

 

You don’t want to miss: Services Offered by Ardhisasa Digital Platform

4.    Lack of sufficient infrastructure at the county level.

With this system heading into the counties, key
concern has been raised on the
preparedness by the counties for this
reforms. Many counties have insufficient
infrastructure
to store, process and disseminate electronic data real-time. In some
places, there will be need to require extra/secure
physical space and/or reliable power.
There will
also be concern to develop guidelines with information on issues relating to
standards, formats, security and dissemination of
information in the system for ease of
reference or
use by users or institutions planning to develop sub-systems compatible
with the national system.

https://www.premieragent.co.ke/blog/how-to-upgrade-or-change-your-account-details-on-ardhisasa/127/

Short timelines.

The timelines shared by the government to complete
the digitization in the whole
country is unrealistic. Given that the
uploading of records must be preceded by the
conversion of
title deeds, it is not in doubt that the process to attain national coverage
will go far beyond the provided December 2022
deadline

5.    Feasibility of the system

While the efforts to digitize land transactions are
highly welcome, users of the NLIMS
have
expressed concerns over its feasibility based on a number of challenges
experienced like difficulties in registering &
upgrading of professional accounts among
other
problems.

6.    Confusion on the award of titles

In full operation, the repealed land registration
laws such as Government Lands Act
(Cap. 280),
the Registration of Titles Act (Cap. 281), the Land Titles Act (Cap. 282) and
the Registered Land Act (Cap. 300). will be
collapsed into one, with all titles issued
under the
repealed laws cancelled and replaced with titles under the Land Registration
Act, 2012. This will likely leave a loophole for
the fraudsters.

When these parcels of land will be migrated to the
new regime, their ownership, size
and other
interests will not change. What will change, however, is the introduction of
Registry Index Maps (RIMs) in place of the current
system that uses deed plans which
is a bit
confusing.

Join the Discussion: How Ardhisasa will help Kenyan Government achieve big four agenda

7.    Identity challenges

There is lack of system crosscheck’s identity
information from the registry of
persons. For
instance, if your identity details do not tally with the information at
the registry of persons, you shall not be able to
transact on the system. This is a
challenge to
those people who will not be able to go to Ardhi house to correct
their details.

8.     Verification of Foreign companies

Where the registered proprietor to a property is a
foreigner or a foreign company,
it will be impossible to transact with your
property until is there is created into the
system a
mechanism to verify Identity information.

9.    Distressed and probate properties

It is not possible to deal with transaction such
searches and sale of distressed
properties and probate matters because of the
approval process required.

10.  Professional accounts inclusion.

Key stakeholders are left out for account
upgrading. There are concerns that the
list of
professionals whose accounts qualify for upgrading is too short. There
have been suggestions that registered private
valuers, registered real estate
agents and registered survey assistants, who
regularly engage in land
transactions on behalf of clients, ought to
be included.

Conclusion

In conforming to the principles advanced in the
Access to Information Act 2016, the
ministry
should have an efficient communication & feedback mechanism where users of
the NLIMS can not only access information but also
lodge complaints when the need
arises. Going forward, there should be an
introduction of a hybrid system on an interim
basis to
allow for a smooth transition until such a time when the NLIMS will be fully
operational

For enquiries, please visit

Ardhi House or email: [email protected]. The ministry can also be reached on hone: 0743922876.

You
may make your comment below for feedback , call us on 0726982982 or on email us
through 
[email protected] as we continuously update our
guides.

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