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FIG PUBLICATION NO. 11
FIG Statement on the Cadastre
This publication as a
.pdf-file
Contents
Introduction
1. Land Management and Land Information
2. The Cadastre and Land Information
3. Different Cadastres
4. The Role of the Surveyor
5. The Cadastre and Land Tenure
6. Cadastral Issues
6.1 Documentation of informal or customary
rights to land
6.2 Designing land registration systems
6.3 Sporadic or systematic approaches to land
registration and surveying
6.4 Definition, demarcation and delineation of
boundaries and parcels
6.5 Technical methods for cadastral surveying
and mapping
6.6 Computer technology
6.7 Organisation, coordination and management
of a Cadastre
6.8 Financing and pricing strategies
6.9 The role of cadastral systems in
formulating, implementing and monitoring land policy
6.10 Access to reliable data
6.11 Measuring Success
7. Conclusion
Appendix 1, Members of the working group
Appendix 2, Literature of general interest
Orders of the printed copies
This statement of the International Federation of Surveyors highlights, from
an international perspective, the importance of the Cadastre as a land
information system for social and economic development. It gives examples of
legal, organisational, and technical issues that need to be addressed in order
to establish and maintain a Cadastre. The statement also describes some of the
different roles that surveyors play in the management and operation of a
Cadastre. This statement does not recommend a uniform cadastre for every country
or jurisdiction.
A Cadastre is normally a parcel based, and up-to-date land information system
containing a record of interests in land (e.g. rights, restrictions and
responsibilities). It usually includes a geometric description of land parcels
linked to other records describing the nature of the interests, the ownership or
control of those interests, and often the value of the parcel and its
improvements. It may be established for fiscal purposes (e.g. valuation and
equitable taxation), legal purposes (conveyancing), to assist in the management
of land and land use (e.g. for planning and other administrative purposes), and
enables sustainable development and environmental protection.
1. Land Management and Land Information
Land management is the process of managing the use and development of land
resources. Some of the critical, and sometimes conflicting, objectives that must
be addressed by land management policies today include:
- improving the efficiency of land resource use to support the rapidly
growing population of many countries;
- providing incentives for development, including the provision of
residential housing and basic infrastructure such as sewer and water
facilities;
- protecting the natural environment from degradation;
providing equitable and efficient access to the economic benefits of land
and real estate markets;
- supporting government services through taxation and fees related to land
and improvements.
A prerequisite for achieving these and other objectives is having effective
access to information about land, e.g. information about land resource capacity,
land tenure and land use. This information is essential in:
- identifying problems and priority concerns;
- formulating and implementing appropriate land policies and strategic
plans to address the problems;
- supporting land use planning and land development activities;
- providing cost-effective land transaction processes to support economic
development;
- implementing equitable and efficient property taxation systems;
- monitoring land use to ensure the identification of new problems and to
evaluate the effect of land policies.
While land management can have many social and environmental objectives, most
developing nations must give priority to immediate economic objectives.
Formalising and providing security for property rights in land, through public
recognition and recording, is today considered to be a primary component of a
free market economy and an essential step in moving towards improved standards
of living.
The Cadastre is the primary means of providing information about property
rights. More specifically, the Cadastre provides the private and public sector
with:
- information identifying those people who have interests in parcels of
land;
- information about those interests (e.g. nature and duration of rights,
restrictions, and responsibilities);
- information about the parcels (e.g. their location, size, improvements,
value).
2. The Cadastre and Land Information
The Cadastre is a land information system, usually managed by one or more
government agencies. Traditionally the Cadastre was designed to assist in land
taxation, real estate conveyancing, and land redistribution. The Cadastre helps
to provide those involved in land transactions with relevant information and
helps to improve the efficiency of those transactions and security of tenure in
general. It provides governments at all levels with complete inventories of land
holdings for taxation and regulation. But today, the information is also
increasingly used by both private and public sectors in land development, urban
and rural planning, land management, and environmental monitoring.
A Cadastre is normally a parcel-based system, ie. information is
geographically referenced to unique, well-defined units of land. These units are
defined by the formal or informal boundaries marking the extent of lands held
for exclusive use by individuals and specific groups of individuals (e.g.
families, corporations, and communal groups). Each parcel is given a unique code
or parcel identifier. Examples of these codes include addresses, co-ordinates,
or lot numbers shown on a survey plan or map.
Graphical indices of these parcels, known as cadastral maps, show the
relative location of all parcels in a given region. Cadastral maps commonly
range from scales of 1:10,000 to 1:500. Large scale diagrams or maps showing
more precise parcel dimensions and features (e.g. buildings, irrigation units,
etc.) can be compiled for each parcel based on ground surveys or remote sensing
and aerial photography. Information in the textual or attribute files of the
Cadastre, such as land value, ownership, or use, can be accessed by the unique
parcel codes shown on the cadastral map, thus creating a complete Cadastre.
The Cadastre forms part of the base data required in any public land
information system. Since information about land parcels and land holdings is
often needed by many different users, having a unified, standard Cadastre for
each jurisdiction helps to avoid duplication and assists in the efficient
exchange of information. The Cadastre is usually created and managed through a
government organisation. In some countries, Cadastres may be the responsibility
of local governments; in others it is a state or national responsibility.
Examples of the data of general interest to a wide user community, that is
usually considered part of the Cadastre, include:
- land parcels (e.g. location, boundaries, co-ordinates)
- land tenure (e.g. property rights, ownership, leases)
- land value (e.g. quality, economic value, tax value, value of
improvements)
Other information can also be connected to land parcels through the unique
parcel identifiers and through cadastral index maps. Such information may be of
importance to specific user groups and includes:
- buildings and other improvements
- agricultural data (land capability classifications, land use)
- forestry data
- utilities (e.g. water, electricity, communications)
- fisheries (noting individuals holding rights in inland and coastal
waters)
- environmental quality (particularly for site-specific analysis and
monitoring)
- demography (population statistics, consumer marketing data, etc.)
The Cadastre plays an important role in the regulation of land use. Land use
regulations stipulate conditions for the initial establishment of a parcel (e.g.
subdivision or amalgamation); the use to which the land will be put; parcel
size; and the necessary access to water and sewerage, roads, etc. In land
development, the Cadastre forms an essential part of the information required by
the private developer, land owners, and the public authorities to ensure that
benefits are maximised and costs (economic, social, and environmental) are
minimised.
3. Different Cadastres
Most early societies developed rudimentary types of Cadastres to support
taxation and other land administration activities. As societies evolved and
property transactions became important, Cadastral records began to take on a
greater legal role. Today, Cadastres often serve many functions and multiple
users.
Through the centuries, many types of Cadastral systems evolved and their
differences often depend upon local cultural heritage, physical geography, land
use, technology, etc. Cadastres may be classified in many ways, e.g. by:
- primary function (e.g. supporting taxation, conveyancing, land
distribution, or multipurpose land management activities);
- the types of rights recorded (e.g. private ownership, use rights,
mineral leases);
- the degree of state responsibility in ensuring the accuracy and
reliability of the data (e.g. complete state mandate, shared public and
private responsibility);
- location and jurisdiction (e.g. urban and rural Cadastres; centralised
and decentralised Cadastres);
- the many ways in which information about the parcels is collected ( e.g.
ground surveys tied to geodetic control, uncoordinated ground surveys and
measurements, aerial photography, digitising existing historical records,
etc.)
All of these factors help to determine the required resolution and scale of
graphical data (such as cadastral maps), the type and characteristics of data
recorded in both the graphical and attribute files, and the organisational and
professional responsibility for managing the data.
Other factors that will influence the format and management of the Cadastre
include:
- history, culture, and traditional land tenure arrangements;
- area;
- physical and economic geography;
- population distribution;
- level of technology;
- traditional public administration arrangements;
- land and property law arrangements;
- land policy priorities for the jurisdiction.
In continental Europe, as in most countries worldwide, the responsibility for
managing cadastral information has historically been divided among several
government organisations and professions. Land registration has generally been
the mandate for the courts and the legal profession. Mapping, parcel boundary
delimitation, and maintenance of parcel data for fiscal, land use control, and
land redistribution purposes have been the responsibility of the surveying
profession. In regions such as North America, other professions have
historically been responsible for land use planning and for land valuation and
taxation.
One major consequence of the development of modern land information systems
using computer technology has been the creation of closer coordination among
organisations responsible for parts of the Cadastral data. In some countries,
the functions of legal and fiscal land recording, surveying, and mapping have
been merged into one organisation. In other countries, the information needed
for the different purposes has been coordinated into one information system or
arranged in such a way that different systems can easily exchange information.
4. The Role of the Surveyor
The role of the surveyor differs with the purpose of the Cadastre and with
different types of organisations. Although there are other activities involved
in managing the Cadastre, such as title recording that is usually the
responsibility of legal experts, the surveyor may be responsible for:
a) Cadastral surveying: This is the definition, identification,
demarcation, measuring and mapping of new or changed legal parcel boundaries. It
usually includes the process of re-establishing lost boundaries and sometimes
resolving disputes over boundaries or other interests in real property.
There are always specific regulations regarding training and experience for
surveyors wishing to carry out cadastral surveys because they have a
professional responsibility to society. Cadastral surveys are carried out by
governmental officials and private surveyors or by a combination of both.
Special certification is required and this can be administered either by the
state or by a professional society.
b) Survey recording: This process includes the checking or examination
of the results of the cadastral survey and the entry of the information in
registration books and on cadastral index maps. A unique parcel identifier is
allocated to each parcel. The examination can check on land policy matters (for
instance, does the subdivision contribute to a suitable land use?); legal
matters (such as the right of the applicant to conduct certain land activities);
and technical matters (for instance, have the survey regulations been obeyed?).
To lower examination costs, government authorities are putting more emphasis on
quality assurance and more responsibility on practising surveyors for the
accuracy of their field data and survey plans.
c) Land valuation: Where the Cadastre is used as a tool for ensuring
implementation of a certain land policy, valuation of land and buildings is
often an integral part of the role of the surveyor. The most common example is
valuation for taxation. But valuation is also important in processes such as
expropriation of land and land consolidation where a systematic survey of all
properties may be carried out to establish relative values for compensating
affected property owners. Subdivision and consolidation surveys may also include
establishing the construction and maintenance costs of roads and other joint
facilities in order to distribute the costs among the new land holders.
d) Land-use planning: When the Cadastre includes initial land
allocation, subdivision or consolidation, the land use planning aspect becomes
an important part of the cadastral surveyor's role. As a professional, the
surveyor is responsible for protecting the interests of the community and this
may involve public consultation and mediation processes. The result may be a new
land use plan, where economical, environmental and traditional points of view,
reach conciliation.
e) Database management: Information technology has created a demand
for specialists in database design and management. As this is an important
component in a modern Cadastre, experts are needed to manage and operate large
databases, for graphical information as well as textual information. Surveyors
play an important role in this field of activity and education in computer
systems is an integral component of today's education and training programs for
surveyors.
f) Dispute resolution: In some countries, but mainly in Northern
Europe, cadastral surveying has special legal significance, where the surveyor
makes decisions concerning land matters which are legally binding. These can be
questions such as: should a land division be permitted, taking into account the
interests of both private developers and the general public?; should a transfer
of land between owners be permitted?; who should be compensated for expropriated
lands?; and what is the correct legal interpretation of old documents?
Consequently, the role of the surveyor has developed from being an independent
expert on a committee or in a court, to being the actual first court instead.
5. The Cadastre and Land Tenure
What types of land tenure are represented in the Cadastre? Land tenure is
concerned with the rights, restrictions, and responsibilities people have with
respect to the land. From a legal perspective, land may be defined as any
portion of the earth to which rights of ownership, stewardship, or use may be
exercised. Thus the land may include, for example, the surface area of the
earth, buildings and permanently fixed improvements, surface and subsurface
resources including water, and in some instances even well-defined units of air
space (e.g. for power easements). Often the land and the buildings on the land
are referred to as real estate and the various rights associated with land are
called real property.
Any type of real property can be recorded in a Cadastre if the right or
restriction can be associated with a definite unit of land. Different types of
rights may be shown on different cadastral maps or layers of map data. Thus, for
example, mineral rights may be shown on a separate map, even perhaps at a
smaller scale than the surface rights.
The most important types of land tenure or real property identified in most
Cadastral systems can be characterised as follows:
a) Ownership usually means the exclusive right to use the parcel and
enjoy the yield from the land and improvements. It also includes the right to
transfer the parcel to another person, to mortgage the property and to lease it.
All of these rights may be more or less restricted by legislation.
It is common today that the legal rights of the land owner are restricted to
using the parcel of land in a manner that is beneficial and appropriate from a
community perspective. Restrictions may also include measures to protect the
environment. Ownership of the land usually includes ownership of any buildings
on the land, but in some jurisdictions land and buildings may be owned
separately.
b) A lease gives the lessee or grantee the right to use the parcel (or
part of a larger parcel) for a limited time, in accordance with the regulations
stipulated not only in legislation but also in the contract with the lessor. The
lessor may be a private landowner or a government authority. The time span of a
lease varies from very short periods (e.g. several months) to periods of up to
99 years or longer.
Leasehold tenure is usually not transferable to a third party without the
consent of the owner. It is not usually possible to use leaseholds as collateral
for loans, unless the lease is for a considerable period. A lessee of land may
own a building erected on that land and the building may be used as collateral.
Leaseholds for buildings and land can also differ in time span.
c) An easement is a limited right for an owner of one parcel to use or
prevent use of some kind on a neighbouring parcel. The right is usually
connected to the parcel and exists in principle as long as the parcel exists.
Special easements or rights-of-way may also exist for such uses as construction
and access to utility lines. There may also be traditional public rights-of-way
over certain parcels to provide access to rivers, the coast, roads, etc.
d) A mortgage is a limited right in which real property is pledged to
secure money. If the property owner does not live up to the terms of the
contract (e.g. does not meet monthly payments on the loan), then the lender has
the right to recover any losses incurred by taking possession of the property.
There may be more than one mortgage affecting a property and the right of
recovery for losses will depend on the priority given to each mortgage.
In some jurisdictions, the lender actually acquires the title or ownership of
the property at the time the mortgage contract is signed. In this case the
property owner has the right of possession and use but the full ownership only
transfers back when all the terms of the contract have been met (e.g. all
payments have been met). In other jurisdictions, the lender only receives the
right to repossess the property if the property owner defaults on the mortgage
(e.g. does not make the payments required).
e) Communal or group rights are important in many countries,
especially where land resources have been abundant and the land use of a group
covers an extensive area. In such cases, the right to use the land and resources
belongs to a group such as a family, a community, a clan, or a band, rather than
individuals in the group. Such rights are often found in customary tenure
systems, but not exclusively.
Different types of communal rights exist, with varying degrees of
restrictions and control on the rights of individual members. When there is no
traditional or legislative control on the individual, the common resources may
become exhausted.
f) Other rights: It is common that land tenure is based on the fact
that the land is used by someone for a certain purpose. Most customary or
traditional land tenure systems are in some way based on this principle,
although the content of the user right may vary considerably within different
jurisdictions
6. Cadastral Issues
In creating, maintaining, and improving a Cadastre, there are a number of
legal, technical, and operational issues that must be resolved according to the
needs and constraints of each jurisdiction. Some of the priority issues are
discussed below.
6.1 Documentation of informal or customary rights to land
Cadastral systems play an important role in land reform where there are
changes in the tenure system. These changes can include, for example:
- formalisation of undocumented traditional or customary tenure;
- formalisation of spontaneous settlement based on occupancy;
- changes from one form of legislated tenure to another (e.g. leasehold or
communal rights to full ownership).
In all cases, the existing rights and claims must be adjudicated and the new
rights should be recorded officially. This may involve developing a new Cadastre
or radically modifying an existing record. It is important that a link is kept
to historical records even though this may not be part of the active cadastral
system.
When a formal land registration system is introduced in a jurisdiction, it is
necessary to investigate the existing informal, traditional or customary rights
to land in order to transfer them with a certain degree of accuracy to the
formal system. Criteria for determining what constitutes a legal claim to land
have to be developed to support the adjudication process. But comprehensive
adjudication of each claim can be very time consuming; it can delay and even
threaten the implementation of the reform. Therefore it is often necessary to
design effective but fast juridical and technical procedures to document the
rights and to resolve any subsequent conflicts.
Land reform in areas where land is held by custom or communally is sometimes
introduced to allow for the development of land markets. It is essential that
such reforms are only started after careful investigations of the need for and
the consequences of the reform. The establishment of a cost-effective Cadastre
for customary rights, with or without changing the legal and administrative
responsibilities is a significant challenge for cadastral organisations in many
developing countries.
6.2 Designing land registration systems
Land registration is the official recording of legally recognised interests
in land. As well as supporting conveyancing and property taxation, registration
systems are often a source of government revenue through the collection of fees
and transfer taxes. Most jurisdictions have some form of registration of legal
documents, ownership, or use rights, but worldwide there have been major efforts
to improve land registration systems to meet new demands for information, land
transactions, and cost reduction. In some cases, a new system of land
registration may be introduced to replace existing systems or informal
arrangements.
There are many types of systems based on legal, organisational, procedural,
and information management distinctions. From a legal perspective, the major
types are divided between deed registration, where the documents filed in the
registry are the evidence of title, and registration of title, in which the
register itself serves as the primary evidence. Title registration systems are
often further classified (e.g. European, Torrens, English) by the way boundaries
are delimited and recorded, as well as other differences. Cadastral maps are,
for example, an important basis of most European systems.
Although these distinctions can be useful, in reality there are as many
variations as there are jurisdictions. For example, some deed registration
systems today include important elements of title registration, such as
cadastral mapping, parcel-based indices, and examination of documents to ensure
compliance with laws and regulations. With computerisation and the development
of modern land information systems, the distinctions among specific systems have
become even less important.
Deed registration systems can generally be implemented more quickly and with
less expense than title registration systems. Deed registration can also be
linked to a system of title insurance as in the USA where the private sector
provides the security found in a title registration system, however such a
system does not usually provide land related information for broader economic,
social and community purposes. The laws and procedures of title registration
systems (including examination of documents and cadastral plans) are more
complex, but in principle, title registration systems have benefits in terms of
greater security of tenure and more reliable information. Furthermore, users do
not have to search through old documents to find information on ownership; they
can rely on the information on the title register. This usually results in lower
transaction costs.
Therefore, in implementing a new land registration system or in reforming an
existing system, it is perhaps most important to consider the needs and
conditions within a particular jurisdiction. Registration systems can then be
designed to reflect specific cost constraints, land law, organisational support,
optimal procedures and information requirements. Both short and long term needs
should be considered, as well as ways in which the system can be improved over
time.
6.3 Sporadic or systematic approaches to land
registration and surveying
When introducing new systems of land registration (land titling) and
surveying in a jurisdiction, the work can be undertaken area by area in a
systematic manner or sporadically, for instance, whenever there is a new land
transaction. The methods can also be used simultaneously.
A major disadvantage of the sporadic approach is that it will generally take
a much longer time to obtain complete coverage within the jurisdiction. A major
advantage is that it requires fewer new resources and is therefore less
expensive in the short term.
If the objective is to extend the Cadastre to a more comprehensive land
information system within a reasonable time frame, the systematic approach is
generally more effective. The time factor can be influenced markedly by the
choice of technical methods used and by the standards for accuracy and data
quality. In general, the systematic approach will reduce the time required to
begin reaping direct benefits from the new systems.
6.4 Definition, demarcation and delineation of
boundaries and parcels
Most parcel boundaries are defined by stable marks or visible features on the
ground, which can be natural or artificial. They can be represented by lines on
maps, often described by bearings or azimuths and distances, or by coordinates.
If the representation on the map has legal priority over the marks on the ground
in cases of dispute, the demands for survey accuracy are usually higher than if
the case is the opposite. Physical demarcation on the ground is important
because it provides actual notice of the boundaries to the landowners.
The demarcation and delineation of the boundaries are a part of a cadastral
survey aimed at defining the parcel on the ground and securing evidence for the
re-establishment of the boundary if it disappears. As the costs of cadastral
surveys are relatively high, the technical requirements of demarcation and
delineation (e.g. accuracy and survey methodology) should reflect such factors
as the value of the land, the risk of land disputes and information needs of the
users of the Cadastre.
The basic spatial unit in a Cadastre is known as a parcel. A parcel can be
defined in many ways depending on the purpose of the Cadastre. For instance, an
area with a particular type of land use may be considered a parcel in some
systems; in others it is defined as an area exclusively controlled or owned by
an individual or group of individuals (e.g. family or corporation). In some
systems a property may consist of several parcels of land which may be
distributed over a small region such as a village. The flexibility in the
definition makes it possible to adapt the cadastral system to particular needs
and thus also adapt the cost of the registration. If, for instance, the purpose
is mainly to protect the ongoing traditional land use, larger parcels
representing common interests can be defined as the basis for the system.
6.5 Technical methods for cadastral surveying
and mapping
Cadastral surveying is usually undertaken using ground survey methods. A
cheap and simple method is to use plane tables or tapes and optical squares.
More sophisticated methods include the use of electronic distance measuring
equipment or "Total Stations", which usually give higher accuracies. Satellite
positioning fixing using the Global Positioning System (GPS) is being introduced
more and more and promises to give high accuracy at a relatively low cost in the
future.
Cadastral surveying can also be undertaken by using aerial photography. Today
high accuracies can be obtained using analytical photogrammetric methods. GPS
can also be used to reduce the costs of establishing ground control. Other types
of maps or images such as orthophotos or enlarged photo prints can be used to
reduce costs in special areas, especially if a systematic approach is used.
Satellite images can today only be used effectively in areas with very large
estates and open terrain and in scales smaller than 1:25,000, whereas most
cadastral maps need to have larger scales (1:500 to 1:10,000) depending on the
size of the parcels.
Computerised mapping systems and geographic information systems reduce the
importance of the physical map in favour of graphical data bases. The latter are
much more flexible for a multi-user, multi-purpose environment.
6.6 Computer technology
Computer technology today offers excellent opportunities for the automation
of Cadastres and the creation of land information systems. Every attempt to
modernise or introduce such systems should consider using computers. Computer
systems can be designed to provide better access to information, better quality,
and better legal and physical security than other systems and in the long-run
are usually more cost-effective. They will greatly facilitate data exchange and
coordination between different agencies.
However computer systems are dependent on an infrastructure for maintenance
and communication as well as access to well-trained operators. Graphical
computer systems are more complicated and demanding on expertise than
alphanumeric systems and require more complicated data management schemes.
6.7 Organisation, coordination and management
of a Cadastre
Since the Cadastre is a public land information system with the aim of
providing information for public land administration, supporting the land market
and protecting legal interests in land, the management of the Cadastre should
preferably be supervised by the government, either through regulation or through
actual operation of the Cadastre.
With deregulation of professions in some developed countries, together with
anti-monopoly legislation and efforts to downsize public administration, new
organisational arrangements are being considered. These range from partnerships
and strategic alliances between government and the private sector for managing
and improving cadastral systems to contracting out some services to the private
sector. It is increasingly common, for example, for the private sector to be
responsible for data capture and update, for surveying and mapping, and even for
the running of the computer system, and for distributing information in some
cases. Such arrangements require standards, guidelines, and at least sporadic
checks by authorities to ensure that the standards are met.
The greatest benefits of a cadastral system or system reform can only be
realised if this basic information system is used and coordinated with other
types of land information. This nearly always involves coordination with other
public and private organisations which are responsible for this data. To be
successful, such coordination needs leadership, effective communication,
commitment, and compromise. Coordination can be facilitated through legislation,
establishment of standards, establishment of advisory groups, exchange of
information etc.
The management of a cadastral organisation includes the establishment and
maintenance of good contacts with, not only the primary users of the Cadastre,
but also with the growing group of secondary users and clients. An important
goal of a cadastral organisation must always be to provide good service to
clients, ie., to give fast, easy and relatively cheap access to reliable data.
This is necessary not only to avoid the development of expensive duplicate
systems, but also to be able to realise the full benefits of a cadastral reform.
Another important aspect of management is the creation of good conditions in
which staff can develop their skills in line with rapid technological
development. A final major aspect is the creation of financing arrangements
(e.g. pricing strategies, private sector involvement, new market opportunities)
that will allow the organisation to invest in and develop new technology and new
applications as the number of customers increases.
6.8 Financing and pricing strategies
Cadastral systems are usually financed through government funding. However,
the general trend in developed countries is to seek financing more directly from
the users. If this is the case and cadastral organisations are to be more
dependent on income from selling their information, it is essential to clearly
define in legislation the ownership of the information, associated copyright
rules and the responsibility for maintaining quality.
A distinction however can be made between the cost of establishing a Cadastre
or undertaking a land titling project and the subsequent cost of maintaining the
system. The establishment of a system is a "one off" cost which may be borne by
government but is increasingly part of a cost recovery program. Maintenance of
the system or the provision of information from the system is more often based
on cost recovery or even designed to generate government revenue.
In other words, more direct financing from customers cannot replace
fundamental public investments in spatial infrastructure, such as the
establishment and maintenance of a national coordinate system. Direct pricing
will be more successful for products of direct interest for specific customers,
for instance information on selling prices of real property. If the price of
cadastral information is too high, this will be reflected in the willingness of
the users to rely on other, less reliable sources. Since the Cadastre is one of
the most important institutions underpinning effective land markets (e.g.
through secure land tenure and efficient land transactions), governments
generally provide basic funding.
Appropriate investments in establishing a Cadastre and/or improving one (e.g.
through computerisation) provide both short and long term benefits. Such
cadastral reforms should be based on a good understanding of user requirements
and system constraints and on an achievable system design. Investigations show
that cadastral reforms often have a higher cost-benefit ratio than is usual for
governmental investments in general. Some of the benefits include:
- more security of land tenure
- better access to long-term credit
- increased productivity of land
- lower transaction costs on the real property market
- cheaper information for land administration
- more equitable and cost-effective collection of land taxes
- improved opportunities to implement land policies
- improved opportunities to plan for sustainable development of land and
other natural resources
6.9 The role of cadastral systems in
formulating, implementing and monitoring land policy
A cadastral system is an information system of land holdings and land use.
Therefore it provides excellent opportunities for identifying problems
associated with the development and implementation of land policies. The
Cadastre can assist in monitoring and controlling matters regarding:
- the size of parcels, both maximum and minimum, for instance to prevent
excessive fragmentation;
- the shape of parcels, to avoid uneconomical subdivision design or
inefficient road and water systems etc.;
- reallocation of land rights to improve social and economic policies
through subdivision, land consolidation, land reallotment etc.;
- land use, for instance agriculture or to ensure that low-cost public
buildings are allocated to the right group of people;
- control and measures taken to implement social programs to improve
access to land ownership by women and minority groups;
- valuation of land for the collection of government taxes and rates;
- collection of contributions to improve common facilities, such as water
systems etc;
- the value of land as a result of development;
- acquisition of land for public or common purposes.
6.10 Access to reliable data
Cadastral systems are used to provide information for various uses in
society. The data often has great legal, social, and economic importance.
Therefore the information should be accessible and the Cadastre should be open
to the general public. Cadastral managers also have a responsibility to ensure
that the information can be relied upon with confidence.
On the other hand, the information can be misused and the system must protect
the interests of individuals from misuse. Misuse can include, for instance,
provision of incorrect information about a person. It also includes the
combining of harmless information with other information in a such way that a
threat is created. Therefore, a balance must be established between open access
to information and the protection of individual interests. This may be achieved
through legislation, management policies, security access codes, etc. However,
it should be emphasised that unless information is readily available to users
and the general public, the real benefits of a Cadastre cannot be realised.
6.11 Measuring Success
While success may be a relative term, there are a number of well recognised
criteria for measuring the actual or potential success of a Cadastre. These
criteria include:
a) Security: The system should be secure such that a land market can
operate effectively and efficiently. Financial institutions should be willing to
mortgage land quickly and there should be certainty of ownership and parcel
identification. The system should also be physically secure with arrangements in
place for duplicate storage of records in case of disaster and controls to
ensure that unauthorised persons cannot damage or change information.
b) Clarity and Simplicity: To be effective the system should be clear
and simple to understand and to use. Complex forms, procedures, and regulations
will slow the system down and may discourage use of the system. Simplicity is
also important in ensuring that costs are minimised, access is fair, and the
system is maintained.
c) Timeliness: The system should provide up-to-date information in a
timely fashion. The system should also be complete; that is all parcels should
be included in the system.
d) Fairness: In development and in operation, the Cadastre should be
both fair and be perceived as being fair. As much as possible, the Cadastre
should be seen as an objective system separated from political processes, such
as land reforms, even though it may be part of a land reform program. Fairness
also includes providing equitable access to the system through, for example,
decentralised offices, simple procedures, and reasonable fees.
e) Accessibility: Within the constraints of cultural sensitivities,
legal and privacy issues, the system should be capable of providing efficient
and effective access to all users.
f) Cost: The system should be low cost or operated in such a way that
costs can be recovered fairly and without unduly burdening users. Development
costs, such as the cost of the adjudication and initial survey, should not have
to be absorbed entirely by initial users. Low cost does not preclude the use of
new information technologies, as long as the technology and its use is
appropriate.
g) Sustainability: There must be mechanisms in place to ensure that
the system is maintained over time. This includes procedures for completing the
Cadastre in a reasonable time frame and for keeping information up-to-date.
Sustainability implies that the organisational and management arrangements, the
procedures and technologies, and the required educational and professional
levels are appropriate for the particular jurisdiction.
7. Conclusion
Cadastre is a field of activity, important in early societies, but even more
important today from a global perspective due to its role in economic
development and environmental management. Through its Commission 7, which is
responsible for cadastre and land management, the FIG should pay increasing
attention to cadastral issues and promote the development of cadastral systems
internationally. Also other commissions within FIG should promote cadastral
development in their work.
More specifically, the FIG should:
- disseminate information to all countries and all international
development agencies on the importance of the Cadastre as an indispensable
institute for land management, sustainable development and economic growth.
- encourage education, training, research and development in the various
legal, economic and technical aspects that are needed for cadastral
development and reform.
- encourage the participation of representatives from developing countries
in the FIG in order to specifically develop cadastral systems adopted to the
needs and demands in societies with customary and informal land tenure
systems.
- encourage all governments to invest in appropriate cadastral system
development.
Appendix 1, Members of the working
group
- Mr. Tommy Österberg, Chairperson (Sweden)
- Mr. Winfried Hawerk (Germany)
- Professor Jo Henssen (OICRF)
- Mr. Jürg Kaufmann (Switzerland)
- Mr. Zeng Sheng Li (China)
- Dr. Sue Nichols (Canada)
- Professor Ian Williamson (Australia)
Appendix 2, Literature of general
interest
- Dale, Peter, 1976. Cadastral Surveys within the Commonwealth. HMSO,
London.
- Dale, Peter and McLaughlin, John, 1988. Land Information Management.
Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- El Catastro en Latinoamérica, April 1992. Revista del Centro de Gestion
Catastral y Cooperation Tributaria.
- Feder G., 1987. Land Registration and Titling from an Economist's
Perspective: A Case Study in Rural Thailand. Survey Review, 29, 226.
- Grundbuch-und Katastersysteme in der Bundesrepublik Deutschland -
Enwicklung und aktueller Stand. Schriftenreihe 7/1993 des Deutschen Vereins
für Vermessungswesen, ISSN 0940-4260.
- Habitat, 1983. Land for housing the poor. UN expert seminar. Stockholm:
Swedish Council for Building Research.
- Henssen, Johan L.G., 1990. Cadastre, Indispensable for Development.
Enschede: International Institute for Aerospace Survey and Earth Sciences
(ITC).
- Henssen, Johan L.G. and Williamson, Ian P., 1990. Registro Territorial,
Catastro y Su Interaccion una Perspectiva Mundial. Topografia y Cartografia,
Vol VII, No. 40.
- Kadaster in Perspectief. Apeldoorn: Dienst van het Kadaster en de
Openbare Registers, 1992.
- Kriegel, O. Herzfeld, G. 1993. Katasterlkunde in Einseldarstellungen.
Loseblattsammlung, Herbert Wichmann Verlag, Karistuhe, ISBN 3-87907-236-1.
- Larsson, Gerhard 1991. Land Registration and Cadastral Systems. New
York: Longman Scientific and Technical.
- Nichols, Sue, 1993. Land Registration: Managing Information for Land
Administration. Technical Report #168, Depat. of Geodesy and Geomatics
Engineering,University of New Brunswick, Canada.
- Organization of Surveying and Mapping in the Federal Republic of
Germany. Schriftenreihe 10/1993 des Deutschen Vereins für Vermessungswesen,
ISSN 0940-4260.
- Schenk, E. 1990. Das Liegenschaftskataster in der Bundesrepublik
Deutschland - Stand und weitere Entwicklung. FIG-Kongreß 1990 Helsinki,
Technical Commission Volume 7, ISBN 951-96097-0-9.
- Simpson, S. Rowton, 1976. Land Law and Registration. London: Surveyors
Publications.
- United Nations 1973. Report of the Ad Hoc Group of Experts on Cadastral
Surveying and Mapping. New York.
- United Nations 1985. Conventional and Digital Cadastral Mapping. Report
of the Meeting of the Ad Hoc Group of experts on Cadastral Surveying and
Land Information Systems. Economic and Social Council E/CONF.77/L.1.
- Williamson, Ian P. 1986. Cadastral and Land Information Systems in
Developing Countries. The Australian Surveyor, Vol. 33 No. 1.
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