Uganda Land Commission

Uganda Land Commission

The Uganda Land Commission is a semi-autonomous land verification, monitoring and preservation organisation, owned by the government of Uganda. The commission is mandated to document, verify, preserve and maintain land owned and/or administered by the government.

The Uganda land commission (ULC) was established by the 1995 Constitution Art. 238. The legal mandate of the commission is to hold and manage any land in Uganda vested in or acquired by the Government of Uganda in accordance with the constitutional provisions and shall offer such other functions as may be prescribed by Parliament from time to time.

Vision

All Government Land and Property thereon secured and effectively managed and historical land injustice resolved.

Mission

To effectively hold and manage all government land and property thereon resolve all historical land injustices.

Objectives of the Uganda Land Commission

·        To ensure the effective and efficient management of all government land and property thereon.

·        To develop and maintain updated inventory and database of all government land and property.

·        To ensure that all government land is titled and secured.

·        To ensure proper use and accountability of land fund

·        To enable bonafide and lawful occupants acquire registrable interest

Structures and Establishment of the Uganda Land Commission

The Commission has two tiers Structure comprising of the top management and the Secretariat. The top management is comprised of the Chairman and eight (8) Commissioners who are responsible for the execution of the mandate of the Commission. Chairman of the commission is full time while the rest of other Commission members are part time.

The Secretariat is headed by the Secretary who is the Accounting Officer responsible for overall coordination, direction and management of all functions of the Secretariat. The Secretary is assisted by an Undersecretary who heads three distinct functional units namely; Finance and Administration, Technical Support and Land Fund.

Roles and Functions of Uganda Land Commission

The 1995 Constitution Art.239 lays out the functions of ULC as to hold and manage any land in Uganda vested in or acquired by Government of Uganda in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution and such other functions as may be prescribed by Parliament.

The Land Act, Cap 227 (sec 49) lays out the functions of ULC as follows;

  • Hold and manage any land in Uganda which is vested in or acquired by the Government in accordance with the Constitution.
  • Where applicable, hold and manage any land acquired by the Government abroad, except that the Commission may delegate the management of such land to Uganda’s Missions abroad.
  • Procure certificates of title for any land vested in or acquired by the Government;
  • Perform such other functions as may be prescribed by or under the Land Act or any other enactment;
  • Sec 41 (2) of the Land Act places management of the Land Fund (LF) to the Uganda Land Commission.

Government Land Management Department

  • Principal Land Officer

(i)       Head of the Technical Land Unit of the Uganda Land Commission.

(ii)      Ensures Government Land is inspected, supervised, surveyed, valued and titled.

(iii)     Undertakes inventory of all Government land.

(iv)     Ensures inspection and research reports are available to the Commission.

(v)      Prepares Agenda for Board Meetings and Minute Secretary of Commission Meetings.

(vi)     Prepares Commission Resolutions through granting of Lease Offers and prepares titles.

(vii)    Monitors performance of lease contracts regarding payment of premiums and ground rent.

(viii)   Performs any other duties as may be assigned by the Secretary.

  • Senior Land Officer 

(i)       Ensure Government land is identified and inventory completed.

(ii)      Ensure inspection and research reports are available to the Commission.

(iii)     Ensure effective discharge of public awareness on the Commission activities.

(iv)     Write and produce quality minutes of Board proceedings.

(v)      Carry out land and property inspection and legal research for the Commission.

Finance and Administration

The Finance and Administration Department is in charge of coordinating all
activities undertaken by the Commission.
It is also responsible for providing optimal delivery of support
services and logistics to facilitate the work of the Commission and is composed
of the following five Units:-

  1. Administration and Finance
  2. Human Resource management
  3. Accounts
  4. Office supervision
  5. ICT.
  6. Records
  7. Audit

The main activities undertaken by the Finance and Administration Department headed by the Under Secretary include:-

  • Supervise the discharge of administrative, procurement, planning and
    finance functions of the Commission.
  • Ensure timely preparation of annual budget estimates of the Commission
    in liaison with the Accounts Section and other Section Heads.
  • Ensure availability, distribution and effective utilization of
    logistics.
  • Ensure adherence to Government financial procurement and administrative
    laws and regulations.
  • Supervise timely preparation and submission of annual and quarterly work
    plans of the Commission.
  • Monitor the Commission Assets, Assets Stores and Disposal Registers.
  • Monitor efficient utilization of released funds.
  • Oversee staff welfare issues in the Commission and chair the Finance
    Committee.
  • Supervise and appraise performance of staff below Commissioner level.
  • Co-ordinate audit queries responses in liaison with Accounts and other
    Action Officers.
  • Deputise the Secretary, ULC in his/her absence.
  • Perform any other duties assigned by the Secretary.