Busia mining community residents to get free land titles
Auko said residents in the mining community must secure their land by getting freehold or customary certificates, to enable them to combat land grabbing.
Buteba sub-county residents attending the land sensitisation baraza at the area sub-county headquarters. (Photos by Egessa Hajusu)
Egessa Hajusu
Journalist @New Vision
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The lands ministry has embarked on registering residents in the gold mining community of Busia district for free customary land certificates.
The need arises from the increasing numbers of gold investors in the area, targeting to secure land cheaply which has rendered some residents destitute after getting low compensation rates.
Buteba sub-county has six gold mining licences in addition to Wagagai Mining Uganda Ltd, which has already occupied Mawero parish comprising four villages.
Transparency International Uganda, through its land and corruption programme, facilitated the open day land rights sensitisation, which brought together district officials and the community at Buteba sub-county headquarters on February 27, 2025.
Transparency International has also partnered with the Justice Centre to provide residents with legal advice.
Gerald Paddy Auko, the programme manager of Transparency International, said residents in the mining community must secure their land by getting freehold or customary certificates, to enable them to combat land grabbing.
This exercise, he said, will extend to other mining areas of Busitema and Sikuda sub-counties and Tiira and Namungodi town councils to prepare residents on what they should expect in future.
Four years ago, when Wagagai started its activities in Mawero parish, there was public outcry over poor compensation, forcing the Government to intervene. Some residents have to date refused to pave way for the company despite being surrounded by Wagagai.
Buteba sub-county chairperson Emmanuel Eduki Egessa said the exercise had come at the right time when the leaders are grappling to help residents handle many threats from the increasing numbers of gold investors in the area.
Gerald Paddy Auko, the Programme Manager Transparency International Uganda.
He said they faced a big challenge as they looked on and could not provide leadership as Wagagai bought land from residents. Most of these had inherited land with no legal documents, which prevented them from leasing their land when investors came.
Busia district land officer Zimuli Emmanuel said few people in the area have certificates of customary ownership and freehold titles.
Challenges of paying surveyors
He said, apart from some members of the business community who have acquired freehold land titles, the majority of residents have not ventured into getting land titles due to lack of money to pay the private surveyors.
Zimuli, however, appealed to residents to survey their land, noting it is the only legal way of having land ownership.
He commended the ministry of lands and Transparency International Uganda for creating awareness, particularly in the mining community where land has become precious like gold.
The residents expressed gratitude that customary land certificates would enable them to have a strong bargaining voice with the mushrooming gold investors in the area who want to acquire land.
Sabastian Obwin thanked the Government for facilitating the processes, saying it would have been costly for them to manage noting that they will not fail to pay the shillings 10,000 required of them.
Residents were given forms to fill and take to the sub-county land committees, which will go on the ground to verify the boundaries.
After endowment, the forms will be taken to the district lands committee, which will come on the ground and declare residents who have qualified for customary certificates.
The whole process will be facilitated by the ministry of land with support from the World Bank