Land tenure is actually the relationship whether customarily or legally defined among individuals, people or group with regards to the land. Land tenure is the institution or the rules that were made by the society in order to regulate behavior.
Grasping the Concept of Land Tenure
The rules of the tenure are defining how property rights to the land are being allocated within the society.
They are defining how the access would be granted to the rights of using, controlling and transferring the land.
Not to mention, it includes as well the restraints and responsibilities of the owner.
To put it in simpler perspective, land tenure systems are used in determining who could use the resources, for what conditions and for how long.
Land tenure is vitally important of our political, economic and social structures. It’s multidimensional that brings Technical, Economic, Social, Institutional, Political as well as Legal aspects into play.
It’s not as Simple as it Looks
Land tenure relationship might be enforceable and well-defined in the formal court of law or even via customary structure in the community. In addition to that, land tenure is constituting intertwining interests such as:
- Overriding interests
- Overlapping interests
- Complementary interests
- Competing interests