Only a small percentage of the world’s poor receive legal recognition of their land holdings, especially where ownership is informal or based on customary forms of tenure. Without a recognized deed, title or lease, the poor cannot use their land to gain access to capital. MEDEEM provides a proactive and sustainable, process-driven solution to bridge the gap between informal land holding and formal land registration.
MEDEEM is able to provide the poor with an affordable means to formalize their land rights by leveraging the efficiencies of GIS technologies with an innovative hybrid business model. Unlike typical “top down” land registration programs that have often failed to effectively serve the needs of the poor, MEDEEM utilizes a unique, private-sector led approach to drive change from the bottom up – one parcel at a time.
THEIR APPROACH
Medeem’s approach is driven by process innovation and the efficiencies achieved by locally managed operations. Medeem’s process parallels the formal land recordation and registration process but does not replace it. Each step in Medeem’s approach is designed for maximum efficiency in terms of cost and time spent. These savings are then passed down to the client enabling Medeem to offer an affordable alternative to the high cost and time-consuming government land registration process that has presented road blocks to clients for years. Medeem’s approach provides a practical and highly efficient private-sector solution to documenting land rights that is driven by locally managed operations at a fraction of the cost to the client.
To further efficiency, Medeem distributes their ParcelCert product through locally established and well respected microfinance (MFI) partners. By utilizing an existing network of local service providers Medeem is building human capital in-country while substantially reducing costs. The ultimate benefit to the client is that the product is affordable and the process comes to their doorstep through someone with whom they have already established a trusting relationship. For those clients who cannot afford the fee outright, the MFI is able to offer the client the option of financing the cost through a small microloan.
The ParcelCert Process™
MEDEEM’s proprietary ParcelCert ™ process is a privately initiated and conducted process of collecting and documenting the necessary information to support a client’s claim of property rights or land ownership. The ParcelCert process is tailored to meet the documentation and parcel survey requirements for formal registration with the government.
ParcelCert Provides Cost Efficient Parcel Surveys
ParcelCert leverages process efficiencies with GIS technology and mobile GPS equipment to achieve a drastic reduction in the cost of parcel surveys and documentation.
ParcelCert Provides Access and Affordability
They go to their clients: ParcelCert simplifies the documentation process by bringing it directly to the poor at a price they can afford. Clients who cannot pay for ParcelCert outright are offered the option of a small microloan to finance the cost.
ParcelCert Land Rights Awareness Program
The ParcelCert Land Rights Awareness Program is introduced at the local village level through educational group meetings that invite local participation and engagement. The program is offered free of charge and designed to equip clients with knowledge of their rights and responsibilities with regard to land assets, the importance of documenting their land rights and ways to recognize and avoid predatory practices.
