Utilization Of Private Land In Kenya Essay

CHAPTER TWO

FACTORS AFFECTING MAXIMUM UTILIZATION OF PRIVATE LAND IN KENYA

“Land remains an asset of great importance to African economies as a source of income, food, employment and export earnings. As well as its economic attributes, land continues to have great social value- as a place of settlement, providing a location within which people live and to which they return- as well as symbolic and ritual associations, such as burial sites, sacred woodlands and spiritual life.”

Access to land and the ability to make effective use of it are critical to the welfare of people worldwide. Since land is a key asset for the rural and urban people, land policies are of fundamental importance for economic activity, poverty reduction, sustainable management and the well-being of households.

The main factors affecting maximum utilization of private land in Kenya can be categorized as follows:

1. Lack of security of tenure.

Tenure security is broadly defined as the perceived right by the possessor of a land parcel to manage and use the parcel, dispose of its produce and engage in transactions, including temporary or permanent transfers, without hindrance or interference from any person or corporate entity, on a continuous basis. This definition not only encompasses

As women change their marital status, their property rights change despite the fact that property rights shape the incentives people have for investing in sustaining the resource base over time. Customary norms link women’s property (including land) to the institution of marriage, therefore compromising their access, making them vulnerable and providing poor security of tenure. In the traditional Kenyan context, the men own land, and wives use the land to produce food for the