Ministry to close land offices for two months
Rusi Cherotich Serem displays a title deed given to her by Lands Cabinet Secretary Jacob Kaimenyi on May 16, 2016 in Uasin Gishu County. Recently Prof Kaimenyi revoked all land control boards, sending shock waves across the country as transfer of title deeds remains in limbo. PHOTO | JARED NYATAYA | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- In a notice, the Lands cabinet secretary said the closure would disrupt activities for two months.
- Those affected are Mombasa, Kilifi, Kwale, Machakos, Kajiado, central registry headquarters at Ardhi House, Nairobi, Nakuru, Kisumu, Eldoret, Bungoma, Meru, Thika and Kiambu.
The Lands ministry will temporally close 13 registries from Monday as it moves to digitise its records.
In a notice, the Lands cabinet secretary said the closure would disrupt activities for two months.
“Digitisation of land records is intended to improve service delivery through electronic land transactions. The exercise is being undertaken by land registrars from various stations, including Nairobi,” said CS Jacob Kaimenyi.
Those affected are Mombasa, Kilifi, Kwale, Machakos, Kajiado, central registry headquarters at Ardhi House, Nairobi, Nakuru, Kisumu, Eldoret, Bungoma, Meru, Thika and Kiambu.
Prof Kaimenyi said booking of registration forms and online searches through the e-citizen portal (www.ecitizen.go.ke) would not be affected.
The government wants to digitise 23 land registries by August 2017.
Recently Prof Kaimenyi revoked all land control boards, sending shock waves across the country as transfer of title deeds remains in limbo.
He said the boards had become a haven of corruption and that fresh blood was needed.
The boards — traditionally chaired by district commissioners or district officers — have enjoyed sweeping powers on land transactions.
