Partners embark on pilot scheme

THE Coffee Industry Corporation (CIC) in partnership with the Treasury Department and partners will embark on a pilot programme to use the incorporated land group (ILG) and voluntary customary land registration processes to revive subsectors in the coffee industry.
This was announced during a cheque presentation of K800,000 to CIC last week to implement the project.
The project involves the CIC in partnership with Treasury, Lands and Physical Planning, and National Planning and Monitoring departments as well as Magisterial Services and the National Identification (NID) office.
The programme was initiated to apply land reform imperatives of the Government’s National Land Reform Programme in the agriculture sector, particularly the coffee industry.
The Government, through CIC, would support the landowners to develop their customary land for large-scale coffee plantations.
The programme aims to rehabilitate run-down plantations and develop new plantations using land reform initiatives.
Landowning clans that agree to put up sizeable customary land for large-scale plantation development would have their clans incorporated through the ILG and register their land through the Voluntary Customary Land Registration process.
Also run-down plantations would have their current land lease titles surrendered and converted to customary land titles or negotiate with title holders in order for the plantations to be rehabilitated.
The programme will meet the Government’s two main objectives of migrating customary land into the formal land market system and increasing coffee production volumes.
CIC chief executive officer Charles Dambui said the project was a good approach in unlocking the potential in managing the plantations.
He thanked the Treasury department for making funds available to implement the project.
He said his team would work together with Treasury and other relevant partners to ensure the project was successful.
The pilot programme will initially be conducted in Eastern Highlands.
Meanwhile, CIC is expected to rehabilitate between three to five rundown plantations, and register and deliver three-five customary land titles for new plantation development.
Upon the success of this pilot programme, CIC will roll out the programme to the rest of the country.
The plantations that meet set criteria which CIC and partners have agreed to will participate.