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{
    "id": 1183505,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1183505/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 167,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Teso South, UDA",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Mary Emaase",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": " Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker, for this opportunity. I would like to support this Motion by Hon. Wanyonyi that is seeking Government intervention to enforce compliance to existing land legislation with respect to policy and regulations. I start my contribution with an illustration. I invite Members to visualise a scenario where we have a farmer who has two acres of land and has four sons. Each one of those sons inherits half an acre. A half of that half is consumed by the homestead. So, how much is left for cultivation or any other activity? It is a quarter of an acre. What does this portray? That the amount of land left for any other activity including farming is diminishing every day therefore, the issue of land fragmentation is real. It is a concern and this Motion raises an awareness to that fact. On the other hand, we have individuals who own huge pieces of land, which are lying idle contrary to the provisions of Article 61 of the Constitution that advocates for productive and sustainable use of land. I support this Motion. We should push for a review to the existing legislation whereby certain provisions are introduced that provide for those who have huge pieces of land which are idle, to lease to those who have capacity and can put that land into some productive use at reasonable rates. So that if you have a piece of land even if it is urban, for commercial use and you are not yet ready to develop it, you can lease it to someone else, generate income for yourself, and that other person can put it into some productive use. The truth is we do not lack legislation on land policy and regulations. We have sufficient legislation but the problem is enforcement. There is no serious implementation with respect to this legislation. As a result of this excessive fragmentation, there is low food production. That is the reason we are now going for importation of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) in this country, because the country is experiencing low production and the food prices have been pushed up. It is not just inflation that has pushed the prices of farm inputs up, it is also because of not leveraging on technology, because the pieces of land are too small. Therefore, we are not able to use mechanisation. The use of mechanisation remains a mirage to majority of our farmers. We cannot also reap from economies of scale because we are reduced to subsistence farming on small pieces of land. Therefore, this country continues to suffer not only from the prolonged drought which is as a result of climate change but because of so many other factors put together. Going forward, the Departmental Committee on Lands, in consultation with the Cabinet Secretary Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development, needs to relook and review these regulations. Also, the Committee on Implementation should do their job of ensuring there is compliance and enforcement of legislation with respect to land."
}