State of land information in South Africa

The report is based on a collaboration between the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in South Africa and the Land Portal Foundation, in collaboration with local partners, in individual countries. It is based on a wide-ranging survey of sources of land information in South Africa, conducted by the CSIR, ‘Sources of Land Information in South Africa and their Institutional Context’, published as a companion document. This formed the basis for a technical assessment by the Land Portal of the availability and accessibility of land information in South Africa, using a methodology based on international open data principles, which had also been applied in four previous SOLI studies (in Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and South Sudan). This report summarises the key points of both pieces of work along with the findings of a collective reflection on what has been learned from the process. Overall the aims have been to produce an up to date map, capable of continuous development, of the land information ecosystem in South Africa, to identify gaps and the potential for future work and to further develop the research and assessment methodologies used, prior to their application in other settings.

For a detailed understanding of the land governance context in South Africa check the country profile.