Benishangul Gumz Regional State Rural Land Administration and Use Proclamation No. 85/2010.

This Proclamation of the Benishangul Gumz Regional State shall apply to any rural land found in the region. It mainly is concerned with land rights land use and administration of rural lands. Land is declared the common property of the state and people and it shall not be subjected to sale or other means of exchange. Any peasant who legally resides in the region shall have the right to hold land irrespective of gender or any other discrimination. Land administration shall be implemented through community participation. Rural land shall not be expropriated unless to use for public services. Any peasant of 18 years or older who wants to be engaged in agricultural sector shall have the right to acquire land freely from the land administrator of his or her Kebele. Private investors shall have the right to acquire land, to use on, by rent from the government or from any other rural land holder based on the agreement to be made. Any peasant who possesses s land holding right shall be provided with a land holding certificate those who lost holding rights shall obtain a return holding certificate.A land use plan of the region shall be prepared. The rural land use plan shall be based on watershed and its preparation shall consider also, land use, soil type, weather condition, vegetation/crop/ coverage as well as socio-economic and political situations. land shall only be used in accordance with the plan. Various provisions concern conditions for land settlement, irrigation development and equal use of water and sustainable use of land. The Proclamation furthermore provides with respect to transfer of land use rights, dispute resolution, lease of rural land, mortgage of rural land use right, and specific land uses in combination with the conservation of soil and trees and the environment and biodiversity in general. Any land user under rain feed agriculture shall have an obligation to plough the land more than 500 meters far from main river, 50 meters from water bodies and more than 10 from gully and also applied soil and water conservation works like terracing to avoid soil degradation. Exotic plant and tree species like eucalyptus which seriously affects the ecology but have huge economic benefit shall planted at distance from agricultural lands and shall be grown in appropriate site.