Tanzania Prepares Permanent Land Dispute Resolution Strategy

Tanzania’s government has begun drafting a permanent national strategy to resolve land disputes, aiming to deliver faster and more effective settlement of conflicts across the country.

The Deputy Minister for Lands, Housing and Human Settlements Development, Kaspar Mmuya, disclosed the initiative while answering a question in Parliament on 26 August 2026 during the first sitting of the fourth session of the 13th Parliament.

Mmuya said the government recognises the existence of land disputes and has already begun taking steps to strengthen their resolution.

He noted that the Prime Minister, Dr. Mwigulu Lameck Nchemba, directed the Ministry to work with the Office of the Attorney General and the Prime Minister’s Office for Regional Administration and Local Government (TAMISEMI) to prepare proposals for a permanent solution to land disputes.

Mmuya explained that, in carrying out the directive, the Ministry has worked with various institutions to prepare a Draft Strategy for the Resolution of Land Disputes.

He added that the strategy, once implemented, will improve awareness, accountability and the speed of handling land disputes.

Mmuya stated that implementation of the strategy also aims to strengthen peace and social cohesion, while improving the environment for investment in land and boosting the national economy.

Land Disputes in Tanzania

Land disputes in Tanzania are a longstanding and widespread problem, driven largely by tension between farmers and pastoralists over shrinking arable and grazing land.

The pressure has been compounded by rapid population growth, poor village boundary demarcation, and weak local institutional frameworks for resolving competing claims.

Existing mechanisms, including village land councils, tribunals, and alternative dispute resolution through mediation, have often proven inconsistent, with conflicts in some areas such as Kilosa in Morogoro persisting for roughly a decade despite repeated interventions.

Tanzania’s national land policy has long called for an independent, fast-working and fair system for resolving land disputes, but implementation has been fragmented across ministries and local government authorities.

Earlier this month, the central government approved TZS 38 billion to survey all 12,333 villages in the country in a bid to end land disputes, with 4,873 villages surveyed to date.

Zanzibar’s administration has separately taken parallel steps, with its Lands ministry setting up a dedicated Special Land Disputes Resolution Committee that has already resolved hundreds of cases.