The Bolivia Land Titling Program (BLTP) works with government counterparts to significantly improve property rights security and expand individual access to land markets. This, in turn, results in: a) increases in farmer income, credit and investment; and b) reductions of conflict and social unrest in the region closely associated with land ownership.
To achieve this objective, the project is supporting the National Institute of Agrarian Reform (INRA) which is the government institute in charge of land reform in Bolivia, and the Property Registry System/Derechos Reales (DD RR) in their respective efforts to title and register properties in the Cochabamba Tropics. The BLTP activity aims at providing the above government entities with the enhanced capacity to oversee and implement rapid and large scale regularization in the Cochabamba Tropics. The regularization process is divided into two phases or stages: the first phase, known as Saneamiento or ownership verification, is performed in the field and involves the property owner and neighbors. The second phase, known as Titulación or titling, involves the processing of the documents needed to issue and register the title, including the signature of the President of the Republic.
Driven by the lofty aspiration to successfully conclude all land ownership verification and titling work in Cochabamba Tropics by May 4, 2008, the project has been helping our government counterparts establish the solid technical, operative and logistical basis required to effectively implement rapid and large scale land titling in the Cochabamba Tropics. BLTP’s long term objective is to significantly enhance INRA’s capacity to oversee and implement physical and legal land regularization so it is eventually able to replicate this process in other parts of the country.
During the initial phase of the project, the BLTP succeeded in helping INRA and DD RR implement Plans I, IIa IIb, IV and V. Plan III was originally financed by the European Community and implemented by the BKP PRAEDAC project. This Plan was transferred to INRA in February 2006 when it became evident that the results fell short from the originally established goals. During the second phase – October 1, 2006 through May 4, 2007 – the BLTP will help INRA and DD RR complete the regularization of as many of the unfinished Plan III properties and also regularize as many properties as possible in the newly added Plan VI area. Plans III and VI contain approximately 65 percent of the 471,000 hectares in the Alternative Development Polygon.
After being on and off several times over the life of the project, the first municipal cadastre was launched in the second quarter of 2007 in the municipality of Villa Tunari. The cadastre will be put together as the regularization process in the municipality is completed, thus counting with up to date information. This is an ambitious activity with the potential for national impact if it is replicated elsewhere, as is the intention of INRA and the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development.