President William Ruto on Thursday opened his five-day development tour of the Coast region with a major land ownership exercise, issuing more than 33,000 title deeds to residents in what he described as a direct response to the region’s long-running squatter problem.

The title deeds, issued at Mama Ngina Drive in Mombasa, will benefit residents from Lamu, Tana River, Kilifi, Mombasa, Kwale and Taita-Taveta counties.

The documents cover land in Kilifi/Weru Ranch, Mwele Simakeni, Msabaha, Ka Dzandani, Wachu Kordentu and the Ronge Juu Registration Unit.

Ruto said the exercise was part of his administration’s commitment to confront historical land injustices that have left thousands of families at the Coast living for decades without formal ownership documents.

“Today, we are here to address the challenge of squatters, citizens who live in fear of being evicted. It is a commitment I made and it is a commitment I intend to keep,” the President said.

The Head of State said his administration has issued 1.5 million title deeds across the country in the past three years, with 381,000 of them going to residents of the Coast region.

He further announced that the government is processing an additional 200,000 title deeds in different parts of the region, which he said will be ready within 90 days and will benefit more than one million residents.

“One million residents will be issued with title deeds. They will stop being squatters and become landowners,” he said.

Ruto directed the Ministry of Lands to accelerate subdivision and adjudication processes to ensure that deserving beneficiaries receive their rightful parcels of land.

He said the government had successfully negotiated with absentee landlords and acquired several parcels of land across the Coast in a bid to resolve long-standing disputes and settle affected families.

The President cited Ronge Juu in Taita-Taveta, which was established in 1969, saying families in the area had waited nearly six decades for formal recognition and ownership documentation.

He said ongoing land adjudication processes are also underway in Vigurungani, Mtaa, Mazola, Chengoni, Bofu, Gandini and Kitengwani, as well as Mihirini, Mwembe Kati, Tsangalaweni, Kalia Ngombe, Viragoni, Godoma, Ngoroki, Chawia and Mu Mari.

“This exercise is aimed at identifying, demarcating and documenting land rights and is expected to result in the issuance of more than 55,000 title deeds,” Ruto said.

The President also said the government is strengthening community land registration to protect communal heritage and secure the rights of local communities.

Six community land units have already been formalized in Taita-Taveta and Tana River counties, while nine others are being processed across the region.

Ruto said deliberate government interventions had led to the acquisition of strategic parcels of land in Kwa Punda in Changamwe, benefiting 8,500 people; Junda in Kisauni, benefiting 12,000 people; Gazi in Msambweni, benefiting 3,000 people; Gombato in Kwale, benefiting 7,000 people; Shambani in Msabaha, benefiting 11,000 families; Ganda in Malindi, benefiting 9,000 families; and Takaungu in Kilifi, benefiting 2,000 families.

He added that negotiations had also been finalized for the acquisition of additional land in Mashamasha in Lamu, benefiting 2,000 families; Migingo in Malindi, benefiting 4,000 families; and three separate locations in Likoni, benefiting 356 families.

“Additional land has also been secured in Junda, Utange and Bombo in Kisauni and will benefit 2,100 families,” he said.

The president said the government is still engaging landowners in Kagaa and Kiwandani in Kilifi, Machungwani in Taita-Taveta, Parbat and Waa in Kwale, Kitangale and Kibusu in Tana River, and Zumzum, Thathini, Ali Dina and Kwa Bulo in Mombasa to facilitate the settlement of squatters.

Ruto praised absentee landlords who had agreed to resolve land disputes through negotiation, saying dialogue remained the most practical path to ending the region’s land crisis.

“We all agreed the solution will not be achieved through court battles but through dialogue,” he said.

He added that land should not remain a source of conflict, fear and displacement.

“It should create jobs, attract investment, strengthen communities and expand opportunity,” the President said.

Deputy President Kithure Kindiki said the land ownership question was one of the key promises Ruto made to Coast residents during the election campaign.

“Today, we are here not to ask the land question but to provide the land answer and the land solution,” Kindiki said.

Mining Cabinet Secretary Hassan Ali Joho said lack of title deeds had kept many Coast residents in constant fear of eviction, while Sports Cabinet Secretary Salim Mvurya said addressing land ownership was among the Kenya Kwanza administration’s top priorities in the region.

Senate Speaker Amason Kingi said the president had shown commitment to resolving challenges facing the Coast, noting that land remained the region’s most pressing concern.

Kilifi Governor Gideon Mung’aro said land ownership issues had remained unresolved for decades despite repeated campaign promises, adding that the government was now taking concrete steps to address historical injustices.

Mombasa Governor Abdulswamad Nassir said Ruto’s administration had made deliberate efforts to address the Coast land question, noting that 30 per cent of the title deeds issued in the past three years had gone to residents of the region.

“This is not a normal political meeting. This is a meeting in which we are delivering on the promises that had been made,” Nassir said.

He added: “Today, the President is not here to make promises. He has come to inform you that he has delivered on the promise he made to you.”

Nassir said the cooperation between the Orange Democratic Movement, the United Democratic Alliance and Kenya Kwanza would continue supporting the delivery of title deeds, universal healthcare and water projects.

“We are united for a cause,” he said.

Taita-Taveta Governor Andrew Mwadime said the meeting was historic, describing it as one of the most significant gatherings convened to address the region’s land problem.

“We have not witnessed a meeting of such magnitude convened to address the long-standing land challenge,” he said.

Kilifi North MP Owen Baya said the people of the Coast would support Ruto’s re-election bid because of his development record, citing the issuance of title deeds as one of the key achievements.

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