A Critical Analysis of the Extent to Which the National Land Commission Addresses the Land Question in Kenya.

Abstract

The land question in Kenya has never been solved. Land is a pertinent source of livelihood, the problem has persisted and in a number of years caused chaos as people grow impatient. Over time, there have been complaints from various communities and recently, the past governments have sought to listen to the ailing communities. The National Land Policy and the National Land Commission characterize efforts to remedy the continued situation bedeviling the African communities. A prominent feature of the problem was the sudden change of the existing mode of land ownership, whereby in Africa land was a communal property, to an individual situation whereby the rich could get more than the poor and the community’s comment about it would be met with deafening silence. Since the passing of the 2010 Constitution, the issue of land and the prospect of land reforms has been reignited. However, this time around, it has come with a heightened level of hope given the immense power given to the National Land Commission by the National Land Commission Act of 2012. In fact, the commission has the power to repossess disused land, control land use, and settle squatters. Such has been the major problems facing Kenyans since independence. With the new laws and the purposefulness shown by agencies given the power to manage land, there is hope on the eventuality of utterly settling the land question.