DRC: the new land law continues to spark debate and raise questions
Presented as a reform aimed at modernising land management in the DRC, it introduces several innovations relating to cadastral digitisation, transparency in land management and better coordination with mining, forestry and environmental legislation.
However, several questions remain regarding the actual impact of this reform on local territories and communities. Numerous analyses highlight ambiguities concerning the coexistence of land rights, extractive investments and conservation projects. Other critics emphasise the risks of conflicts linked to concessions, compensation mechanisms and the safeguarding of customary rights in rural areas.
Discussions also focus on the potential gap between the legal ambitions set out by the reform and local realities characterised by informal settlements, jurisdictional conflicts and inequalities in access to land. In several provinces, issues of spatial planning, recognition of community lands and the participation of affected communities remain unresolved. Against this backdrop, a number of stakeholders are calling for further research into the social, economic, environmental and political implications of this land reform, in order to gain a better understanding of its practical effects on Congolese territories.
