Land commission starts updating govt land countrywide

___________________

JINJA - The Uganda Land Commission (ULC) has launched a nationwide campaign to culminate in the establishment of an updated, comprehensive digital inventory of all government land.

The exercise, according to Tom John Fisher Kasenge, a commissioner at ULC, involves engaging key stakeholders like members of the district and city land boards, physical planners, environmental officers and security chiefs, among others.

These, Kasenge says, are being sensitised on how to help people or entities on government land, including those occupying it illegally, to regularise their occupation, while illegal titles or freehold titles shall be cancelled.

“We want to know all government land, including that where freehold land titles were issued. We shall cancel such titles and help the holders to regularise their occupation. Money they paid earlier shall be considered since it was paid to government entities,” he said on December 9, 2025, while meeting officials at the Jinja City Hall.

ULC commissioner Kasenge (middle) with other ULC officers address the media after a meeting with stakeholders in Jinja. (Credit: Charles Kakamwa)

Kasenge, who clarified that the law bars private individuals from possessing freehold titles on government land, also noted that several people and agencies with leases on such land have been defaulting on their annual payments to the government, in breach of the law.

“This exercise will help us get authentic information, the basis of which the commission will make good decisions,” he said, adding that ULC, with the help of a consultant, is establishing a system through which people with leases on government land will regularly be reminded of their obligations, such as clearance of their annual payments.

It will also be used to send messages to remind leaseholders of the expiry dates of their leases, he said.

“We have noticed that some people pay ground rent only for the first year and then relax, but when they return to renew their lease, they are reminded to pay for the other 48 years they have occupied the land, which is an inconvenience, yet paying each year is much easier,” he said.

Kasenge explained that the updated and digital inventory will be crucial in stemming land fraud and disputes, ensuring guided development and also help the government know the available land for investment purposes.

Commenting on fraud, Kasenge regretted that there have been instances where a single piece of land is reported to have up to three titles. This, he said, will be unheard of with the new innovations.

He asked residents to utilise the 22 zonal land offices across the country since they offer the very services they would get at the ministry offices in Kampala, but cautioned against dealing with brokers and conmen.

Assistant Jinja Resident City Commissioner Michael Kasede asked residents seeking to register their land to always follow the ministry guidelines to avoid getting into problems.

The ULC team, headed by Kasenge, is in charge of areas of Jinja, Entebbe, Mubende, Masaka and Kampala as other teams traverse other parts of the country on the same mission, Kasenge said.