Tinotenda Hove – The Government’s announcement of a 50-year land-use planning framework has drawn criticism from those who argue that long-term promises offer little comfort to Zimbabweans grappling with immediate economic woes, unresolved land disputes and delayed access to title deeds.

While officials presented the ambitious plan as a blueprint for future development, critics say the initiative highlights the gap between Government planning and the urgent needs of citizens struggling with poverty, unemployment and uncertainty over land ownership.

Speaking during the World Rural Development Day commemorations in Harare last week, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Lands and Rural Development Professor Prosper Matondi said authorities are working on a nationwide digital land cadastre and spatial planning system that will regulate how land is used over the next five decades.

“Once we have put all this data together, we digitise it and start offering different forms of services with a national data system that has our land attributes, that we then transition to a land cadastre system,” said Prof Matondi.

He acknowledged that boundary disputes remain a major obstacle, saying the new system is intended to minimise conflicts.

“The purpose (of a cadastre system) is to bring people together to know that this is your boundary, this is my boundary. It should not be a source of conflict,” he said.
Prof Matondi also defended the long-term planning approach, explaining that Government wants to reserve land for future infrastructure projects.
“If you are going to be on a trunk road and you want to have your farm there, you think it is nice to be closer to a main road, but we will tell you that we are going to put eight lanes in the next 30 or 40 years. That is land-use planning,” he said.

However, the admission that title deeds continue to face delays due to unresolved disputes and mapping challenges is likely to fuel concerns among farmers and landholders who have waited years for secure tenure.

“People are getting stuck in particular steps, especially those that have to do with maps and diagrams and those that have got to do with land disputes,” Prof Matondi admitted.

Although Government insists that strict verification is necessary before issuing title deeds, critics argue that bureaucratic delays continue to leave many landholders in limbo while authorities focus on ambitious long-term strategies instead of delivering immediate solutions.

Prof Matondi maintained that land remains central to Zimbabwe’s future development.
“Land is more than just what it is. It is heritage. It is soul. It is spiritual. It is everything,” he said.

The land-use framework forms part of the Government’s Vision 2030 agenda, but for many Zimbabweans facing today’s economic realities, promises stretching 30 to 50 years into the future may do little to ease the challenges confronting them now.