Street-level land administration in post-conflict peri-urban areas: the case of Waitiki Farm

Abstract

There is a dearth of theoretical and empirical work examining street-level land administration officials (SLAOs) in post-conflict peri-urban communities in sub-Saharan Africa. This article investigates how SLAOs deliver land administration services under a hybrid governance regime in a localised post-conflict environment, and how they balance strict adherence to the rule of law and a flexible application of rules and regulations. The study is based on a case study in Mombasa. The theory argues that, in Waitiki, SLAOs evaluate their situation and formulate a range of strategies to deliver services and deal with poor governance challenges like corruption.

Keywords:

• Street-level bureaucracy
• Land administration
• Peri-urban
• Post-conflict
• Street level land administration
• Waitiki farm
• Street-level land administration official

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

Since the interviewees included officials currently working in land administration offices, who can easily be identified, there is a risk of them being easily identified if they are not anonymised. However, scholars who are interested in this research are welcome to contact me privately for more detailed information.

Ethics approval for the study on which this paper is based was provided by the Conjoint Faculties Research Ethics Board (CFREB) of the University of Calgary. Further, a national research permit approval from the National Commission for Science, Technology and Innovation was obtained.

Notes

1 As used in this paper CSOs refers to national level civil society organisations while CBOs refer to community level governance structures.

2 It is expected that wherever one goes all officials will say that they do not have enough money or staff or equipment.

3 The two corruption reports rate the Ministry of Lands and Physical Planning as one of the most corrupt agencies in Kenya. In addition, the reports note that land corruption is pervasive at all levels within the agency.

Additional information

Funding

The Kenya component of the study was funded by the Chair in Land Tenure and Cadastral systems at the University of Calgary during the author’s PhD studies.

Notes on contributors

Dennis Mbugua Muthama

Dennis Mbugua Muthama is currently a lecturer at the Real Estate, Construction Management and Quantity Surveying, University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya. He received his PhD in Geomatics Engineering in 2022 from the University of Calgary, Canada. Professionally, he is a full member of the Institution of Surveyors of Kenya (ISK).