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VI. RECOMMENDATIONS
A. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR GOVERNMENT
1. Central government should suspend granting land concessions until the land law is revised
or clarified.
2. Government should open a public discussion concerning land law and property rights in
Mozambique at the earliest opportunity after elections. The land law should be assessed,
then revised or replaced.
3. A revised land law should legalize land transactions, including those that are already
taking place. Privatization of land markets may well give women—and other land users
with secondary rights—greater opportunities to gain control of property and hold
resources. But this should be studied carefully; this type of regime, particularly if
combined with individualization and/or registration, may lead to the concentration of all
rights in the (male) heads of household or lineage heads, stripping women and others of
their secondary user rights.
4. A revised land law should create secure, negotiable, private rights. As part of this
revision, government may consider registering property rights in selected areas of the
country, particularly those of the most economically strategic importance.
5. Provincial governments should strive to devolve land management to the district and
locality level.
6. District and locality governments should incorporate local communities and their leaders
in the process of land management. Open forums should be created in which government
representatives and local community members can exchange ideas regarding their needs
and objectives.
7. All levels of government should recognize local community political structures and their
leaders and involve them in the management of land and natural resources and the
resolution of conflicts.
8. The land tax code should be reassessed, revised as necessary, and enforced. Commercial
landholders should pay land taxes that reflect the market value of their lands. (This would
help to discourage some types of land speculation.)
9. Government should avoid entering into joint ventures, which continue to place demands
on state resources without substantial returns to the treasury, and should seriously
consider privatization of its existing joint-venture enterprises.