Residents want title deed digitisation

BULAWAYO residents have urged Government to allow property owners with outstanding municipal debts to proceed with the digitalisation of their title deeds, arguing that linking the two processes could leave many homeowners unable to secure their properties within the stipulated period.

Residents from Wards 8 and 27 raised the concern during a meeting in Pumula South yesterday, saying they faced difficulties in settling council arrears while also meeting the US$215 cost of converting their physical title deeds into digital documents.

Under the Government’s nationwide Title Deeds Validation and Securitisation Programme, property owners are required to present their original title deeds for verification and engage registered conveyancers to facilitate the process.

Residents said they should not be prevented from participating in the programme simply because they had outstanding municipal bills.

One resident said the financial burden of clearing council arrears and paying for the digitalisation process was too high for many households.

“Clearly, it is almost impossible for us to be able to do both within the stipulated time. We urge our councillors to engage the Government so that it waives either the US$215 fee or allows for digitalisation to proceed while we have outstanding debt,” said the resident.

Ward 27 Councillor Lizzy Sibanda urged other councillors to take up the concerns of residents and engage Government over the matter.

“I urge other councillors in surrounding neighbourhoods to also take up their struggle and do the best of their abilities to assist them,” she said.

The residents’ concerns come as Government implements the Title Deeds Validation and Securitisation Programme, which was rolled out nationwide in May as part of efforts to modernise Zimbabwe’s land administration system and strengthen property rights.

The programme, implemented through the Department of Deeds, Companies and Intellectual Property, is anchored by Statutory Instrument 76 of 2025.

It seeks to verify the authenticity of existing property records and convert them into secure digital records to reduce the risks of fraud, duplication and loss.

Property owners are required to engage a registered conveyancer of their choice and produce their original title deeds for validation.

The conveyancer submits the required information through the Digital Land Administration Platform (DLAP), which enables the Deeds Registry and registered conveyancers to process and manage property transactions electronically.

Upon successful verification, a securitised title deed is issued.

However, residents said the process was becoming financially burdensome, particularly for homeowners with outstanding municipal charges.

A representative from Royal Legal Aid Trust told the meeting that the US$100 professional conveyancing fee covered services intended to prevent duplication and mishandling of documents while providing a clear and legally traceable process to protect property owners from fraud.

The full cost of the digitalisation process is US$215, comprising US$100 for professional conveyancing services, US$100 for official registry registration and validation and US$15 Value Added Tax.

Residents said while they understood the need to secure their property records, Government should consider separating title deed digitalisation from the settlement of municipal debts.

Ward 8 councillor and Bulawayo Deputy Mayor Edwin Ndlovu last month urged residents to replace their old paper-based title deeds with secure digital versions as part of Government efforts to overhaul the country’s land title system.

Government has given homeowners, farmers and businesses a 24-month window to submit their original title deeds for verification and replacement with high-security digital deeds.

The window is expected to run until mid-2027.

The digitalisation programme is also expected to unlock the economic value of properties by enabling owners to leverage their assets for financing.

Residents, however, fear that requiring homeowners to first clear municipal debts could exclude financially constrained households from the programme.

They have therefore called for a policy intervention allowing the two processes to run independently, with municipal authorities pursuing outstanding debts separately while property owners secure their title deeds within the stipulated period.