NAIROBI, Kenya, Sept 2- The Chief Land Registrar, David Nyandoro, has confirmed that the Community Land Registrar for Marsabit County had already been designated in January 2021, more than two years before an applicant sought information on the official responsible for the role.
The disclosure followed a court order directing the Chief Land Registrar to facilitate access to information on the designation of a Community Land Registrar for Marsabit County, following a request made by James Gitau in May 2023.
In a letter to the High Court, Nyandoro said 113 senior Land Registrars had already been designated as Community Land Registrars and posted across the country on January 28, 2021, in accordance with Section 9 of the Community Land Act.
Gitau had written to the authorities on May 29, 2023, seeking the name of the designated Community Land Registrar for Marsabit and the date of the designation.
He also asked the authorities to provide a timeline for the appointment if no registrar had been designated, as well as the challenges delaying the process.
Although the request was received by the Chief Land Registrar’s office on June 12, 2023, correspondence from the Office of the Attorney General indicated that the office did not respond, prompting Gitau to seek intervention from the Commission on Administrative Justice.
The commission later ordered the Chief Land Registrar to facilitate access to the requested information and records within seven days. The Office of the Attorney General was also cautioned that failure to comply with the order could amount to contempt of court.
The Chief Land Registrar’s office later confirmed that Wanjohi Gichuki was the designated Community Land Registrar for Marsabit County and that he had submitted a report to the Land Cabinet Secretary Alice Wahome on June 29, 2026.
The office also explained that Marsabit County does not have its own Land Registry and that the Isiolo Land Registry currently handles all registrations affecting properties in the county.
“Further, we wish to bring to the attention of the court that in March 2024 the county government of Marsabit submitted to the Cabinet Secretary an inventory of 18 unregistered units of community land. The inventory by the county government was based on electoral wards within the county,” Nyandoro said in his letter.
While giving an update on the registration of community land in Marsabit, Nyandoro said the county government had submitted an inventory of the 18 unregistered units of community land to the Cabinet Secretary, based on electoral wards.
According to Nyandoro, the Land CS published the community land adjudication programme for Marsabit County through a Gazette Notice on July 3, 2024, initiating the process of community land recognition, adjudication and registration.
So far, three communities in Marsabit—Laisamis, Logologo and Karare—have conducted elections, selected their Community Land Management Committees and received certificates of registration, according to the Chief Land Registrar’s office.
