Background information
Since 1908, the land registry had maintained a manual system of record keeping which had the following challenges:
- The record retrieval process was quite slow
- It had the inefficiencies as so much paper work was maintained
- It had the inaccuracies associated with manual system
- It lacked adequate internal controls as the number of records grew many folds.
Computerized Land Registry
In September 2003, the government took a decision to begin the exercise of computerizing the land registry. The aim was to address the shortcomings of the manual system, restore the integrity of land registry and ensure modernization of the operations to meet the needs of the growing economy. The computerization process has almost brought land transactions to a halt as the files and records are in the process of being properly organized under the new system.
The computerization project is now complete and this will go a long way in minimizing the delays and the many land conflicts in the country. The computerization is also expected to solve problems of forging titles, missing files and the red tape in searching land information. Storage and retrieval of information will be easier and faster
Challenges at Land Registry
The Land Registry has the following challenges:
- Duplicate land titles for one piece of land.
- Forging land titles.
- The country had only two registrars at the land registry in Kampala to handle the huge number of nationwide applications for land titles.
- A poorly managed land registry has frustrated real estate investment by pushing up the transaction costs of using land as collateral for credit in Uganda