Naivasha
16th December, 2025
The National Land Commission Commissioner, Hon. Tiyah Galgalo, has raised concerns over slow progress in implementing the Community Land Act 2016, nine years after its enactment, with many group ranches yet to transition to formal community land titles.
Speaking at a workshop at a Naivasha Hotel, the Commissioner emphasized that the delays in securing community land rights are worrying and require collective action from all stakeholders.
“The government alone cannot work in isolation in this exercise of registering community land and transitioning group ranches. This is a collective responsibility,” Commissioner Hon. Tiyah stated.
The two-day workshop aims to evaluate implementation gaps, assess registration progress, and review the transition process for group ranches.
The Commissioner emphasized that data plays a critical role in monitoring land rights to inform policy by providing evidence on tenure security, gender gaps, and conflict risks, enabling targeted reforms and investments, further calling for funding from all stakeholders, both state and non-state actors to enhance monitoring of land rights.
She called upon all stakeholders to support community land registration under the Community Land Act, along with monitoring registrations and group ranch transactions, to formalize ownership and protect against grabbing.
“Article 67(2)(b) of the Constitution of Kenya mandates NLC to advise on comprehensive programs for land rights registration. We also monitor land rights to prevent fraud, overlaps, and disputes affecting vulnerable communities,” noted Commissioner Hon. Tiyah.
“The work we do here will determine whether communities across Kenya finally receive the secure tenure they deserve, tenure that has been promised in law but delayed in practice,” the Commissioner added.
The workshop that is supported by Chepkitale Indigenous People Development Projects seeks to generate actionable plans for strengthening land rights protection and promoting sustainable community land management nationwide.
On their part the development partner Chepkitale Indigenous People Development Projects on behalf of Community Land Action Now (CLAN!) noted that they are currently supporting over 50 community lands in the registration process, with several bottlenecks that include reluctance from County Governments, conflicts within the communities, among others.
Other officers who accompanied the Commissioner include Esterina Dokhe Principal Land Rights Officer, Planner Christopher Kitonga, Principal Land Use Officer, amongst others.