Kenya decided to put an end to its problem of landappropriation and corruption in real estate industry by assembling a “blockchain team”. It will attempt to resolve the issue using proper technology.
It also plans to apply blockchain to legitimize land ownership in the country. Joseph Mucheru, Kenyan Minister of Information, said that using a blockchain platform will provide “security, efficiency, andtransparency”.
He has put together a team with a target to investigate how Blocktech can help stamp out theft of land. The timing couldn’t be better as cases of ‘double ownership’ have already become a challenge for the most part of African states.
Team leader Bitange Ndemo told BBC:
“We missed the internet wave, caught up with mobile technology… blockchain is the next wave – and we must be part of it.”
Land Layby Group, a Nairobi-based real estate firm, has already implemented blockchain as part of its business and has launched a private blockchain based land registry network to guarantee safe property acquisitions for its clients.
Peter Tole, head of Land Layby Group, told Reuters: “I see most African governments adopting this (blockchain) technology that will revolutionize land registries.” He also hopes to spread this network to other African countries with same problem, like Ghana, Tanzania, Ethiopia, etc.
By Anastasia Bugaychenko