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Either way, one cannot talk much about new grants for agricultural land leases. Most of the agricultural land leases covered periods of 999 years while other holdings were granted as freeholds. It is worth noting that most of these holdings had their rents placed at very low levels.
There has not been much activity on the front of agricultural land administration except effecting transfers when sales happen; registering charges when loans are taken; occasional valuations for compulsory acquisition whenever there is need to get land for public purposes; collection of the meagre rent.
With this kind of almost routine operations at the lands department with respect to agricultural land leas
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administration, the talk of huge tracts of land being leased to foreign governments in the coast region for biofuel and agricultural use brings to the fore the need for re-engineering agricultural land administration in the country.The changes in constitutional provisions regarding the maximum periods that foreigners can hold land in Kenya affects some of the existing leases.
Actualization of this provision requires that the affected parcels are listed and new documentation is put in place as soon as possible.
The provision that land use regulations will be put in place means that clear land use plans have to be submitte
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and reviewed. Guidelines for how these plans will be developed and the minimum standards that need to be observed must be put in place first before any one can be required to make any plans that meet basic requirements of efficacy.
The core land policy principles outlined both in the new Constitution and Sessional paper No.3 of 2009 on the National Land Policy are no longer mere proposals.
Those holding leases on agricultural parcels should of necessity be required to submit clear plans indicating how they will develop the land that they are holding.
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