LAND VALUE (AMENDMENT) ACT, 2019

The Land Value (Amendment) Act, 2019, allows the Kenyan government to take possession of land before paying compensation, with a payment window of up to one year. The Act repeals the requirement for Free Prior Informed Consent (FPIC) for displaced persons and adopts a market-value approach for community land valuation, which may ignore non-monetary cultural and livelihood values. Furthermore, the requirement to prove six years of uninterrupted occupation for unregistered land is identified as a barrier for itinerant pastoralists.

• The Act permits the government to take possession of compulsorily acquired land before compensation is paid, extending the payment deadline to one year after possession.
• The legislation removes the necessity for Free Prior Informed Consent (FPIC) for individuals displaced by development projects.
• The adoption of a market-value approach for community land valuation may lead to undervaluing land by ignoring non-monetary factors such as emotional attachment, cultural values, and livelihood values.
• The requirement for unregistered community land occupants to prove six years of uninterrupted occupation to receive compensation is incompatible with the itinerant lifestyle of pastoralists, who typically move every three months.
• The Act provides no compensation for inconveniences caused by urgent land acquisitions and fails to define what constitutes a 'matter of urgency'.

APA

Okoth, E. M. A. (n.d.). LAND VALUE (AMENDMENT) ACT, 2019. Natural Justice. https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/LVA-Fact-Sheet-1.pdf

Chicago

Okoth, Eva Maria Anyango. LAND VALUE (AMENDMENT) ACT, 2019. Natural Justice, n.d. https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/LVA-Fact-Sheet-1.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Okoth |first1=Eva Maria Anyango |title=LAND VALUE (AMENDMENT) ACT, 2019 |publisher=Natural Justice |url=https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/LVA-Fact-Sheet-1.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{okothndland, author = {Okoth, Eva Maria Anyango}, title = {{LAND VALUE (AMENDMENT) ACT, 2019}}, institution = {Natural Justice}, url = {https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/LVA-Fact-Sheet-1.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }