Land ownership and conflicts in Isiolo District, Kenya

Abstract

Land is at the heart of conflicts in many parts of the world. Competition and violent conflicts over land have intensified leading to deaths and loss of properties. In Isiolo District multiple interests and categories of people have come into play and impinge on one another as they seek to acquire, defend and exercise claims on Land. This study assess key historical and socio-political dimension of land conflicts, factors causing conflicts, the procedures of acquiring land and interventions applied in land-based conflicts in Isiolo District. Oral testimonies, key informants interviews, focus group discussion and group discussion were used to collect the data. Archival materials were also used to complement the views of the informants. Views of different ethnic group were presented and analyzed using ‘stakeholder’ analysis as tool. The State was also considered as a ‘stakeholder’ due to its various roles in land administration and management. It was found that in addition to various factors underlying the cause of conflicts in the area, land ownership was the major issue of conflict among the different ethnic groups in Isiolo District. The conflict in the pastoral area has always been assumed to be caused by scarce resources (pasture and water), however, the study established that the main cause of conflicts such as in 2000 was because of land. Other factors underlying the conflicts were colonial and post colonial policies, alienation of land for other uses by the government, politics, land laws (Customary vs. Statutory) and irregularities surrounding the land allocation procedures. Neither the modern, nor the traditional mechanisms were effective in solving land conflicts in Isiolo. However, whereas isolation of either of the legal systems may further complicate the problem, a combination of methods may bring about better results. Therefore, the customary system of conflict resolution should be revitalized and harmony created between the two legal systems in order to better address rampant conflict in the area.