LSG2201: Cadastral

Surveying
 Course Description

The course provides a systematic overview of the

fundamentals of cadastral surveying i.e. the
definition, marking and re-establishing of
property boundaries. In addition the recording of
cadastral information and the procedures for
approval of cadastral plans and maps will be
presented. It aims at imparting the necessary
skills the student requires to plan, manage and
execute cadastral surveys.
 Course Objectives

This course aims to:

•Introduce the concept, purpose and
methods of carrying out cadastral surveys.
•Discuss the establishment of control for
cadastral surveys.
•Develop competence in carrying out
cadastral surveys in rural and urban areas.
 Learning outcomes

At the end of the course, the student should

be able to:
•Identify and differentiate the different types
of boundaries.
•Plan, manage and execute cadastral and
boundary re-establishment surveys.
•Prepare comprehensive surveyors’ reports in
the appropriate format as prescribed by the
Surveyors’ regulations.
Course content
Introduction
•Purpose and requirements of cadastral
surveying
•Institutional framework
Boundaries
•General and fixed boundaries.
•Approximate plot boundary and specific
boundary.
•Graphical accuracy and survey accuracy.
•Boundary markers and their characteristics.
 Establishment of control for
Cadastral Surveys
•Classification of cadastral surveys
•Establishment of control for urban surveys
•Establishment of control for rural surveys
 General Cadastral Surveys

•Guidelines and standards for cadastral surveys

•Instrumentation
•Adjudication and demarcation
•Rural surveys
•Urban surveys
•Sub division surveys
•Setting out a cadastral layout
•Road width and splay corners
•Area computation
 Computation of Cadastral
Surveys
•Preparation and contents of a Job Record
Jacket (JRJ)
•Basic computations
•Triangulation computations
 Boundary Re-establishment

•Basic concepts
•Boundary evidence
•The restoration of lost corners
•Resurveys
•Special surveys
 Mode of Delivery

The course will be conducted through a mixture of

both physical and online lectures, tutorials, field
practicals and group discussions among the
students. Basic lecture material and data will be
provided by the course facilitators and this will be
supplemented by individual reading effort by
students. Suggested instructional materials
include surveyors’ tapes, total stations, GNSS
receivers and sample cadastral maps.
Mode of Assessment

Assessment will be done through continuous

assessment and a final written examination.
Continuous assessment will include
individual and group assignments, a test and
practical exercises.
A final examination will be offered at the end
of the semester. Coursework will carry a total
of 40% and a written examination will carry
60%.
 Introduction

•Boundary or cadastral surveys are the oldest types of surveys

which date back to about 1400 BC when plots of ground were
subdivided in Egypt for taxation purposes.
•From Biblical times when the death penalty was assessed for
destroying corners, to the colonial days of George Washington
who was licensed as a land surveyor by William and Mary
College of Virginia and through the years to the present,
•Natural objects (i.e. trees, rivers, rock outcrops etc. ) and man-
made objects (i.e. fences, wooden posts, iron, steel or concrete
,markers, etc.) have been used to identify land parcel
boundaries.
 Introduction

•As property increased in value and owners disputed rights to land, the
importance of more accurate surveys, monumentation of the
boundaries, and written records became obvious.
•The term land tenure systems applies to the manner in which rights
to land are held in any given country. Such a system as a minimum
must provide
1) A means for transferring or changing the title and rights to the land
2) Permanently monumented or marked boundaries that enable parcels to be
found on the ground.
3) Officially retained records defining who possesses what rights to the land.
4) An official legal description of each parcel.
 Introduction

•Documentation from cadastral surveys could be a

Title, which is a written document that contains
information that describes the property.
•Property description here is a result of a land
survey and the various descriptions include Block
and plot numbers, plot dimensions, plot owners,
plot area , coordinates and plot location.
 Categories of Land Surveying

Activities involved in the practice of land surveying can

be classified into three categories.
Original surveys to subdivide the unsurveyed land in
Uganda (Fresh Surveys)
Retracement surveys to recover and monument or
mark boundary lines and corners which were
previously surveyed (Opening Boundaries).
Subdivision (or amalgamation) surveys to establish
new smaller parcels or land within lands already
surveyed (Plot Subdivision).
 Purposes of Cadastral Surveys

1. Cadastral surveying facilitates the transition

from traditional informal land ownership to
formal land ownership. Traditional land
ownership is a type of ownership where land is
owned communally and this land is not
surveyed. In formal land tenure, land is
surveyed. Cadastral surveying thus facilitates
formalization of informal land tenure.
Qn.: How many tenure systems do we have in
Uganda? Are they all formal tenure systems?
 Purposes of Cadastral Surveys

2. Cadastral surveying determines clearly

the ownership individuals have in land.
This reduces on instances of disputes.
Qn.: Do you think if all land in Uganda was
surveyed, then we would not have disputes?
Purposes of Cadastral Surveys

3. Cadastral surveying facilitates land

registration. Deed plans are prepared
from measurements made in the field and
deed plans are attached in the final title.
Qn.: What are deed plans? Are deed plans
sufficient to protect ones rights on land?
What is the difference between a deed plan
and Title?
Purposes of Cadastral Surveys

4. Cadastral surveying facilitates land transactions.

Cadasters containing information obtained by cadastral
surveying provide information to buyers and sellers
which information is a prerequisite for land transactions.
i.e. land values, land locations, etc.
Qn.: Can transactions take place with out surveying? Why?
Where? What are the consequences?
5. Measurement of land to produce a deed plan from
obtained coordinates and area which is used in land
registration facilitates the transfer of land from one
individual to another.
 Purposes of Cadastral Surveys

6. The spatial data obtained from cadastral

surveying is used in land administration.
The land records obtained from cadastral
surveys are used in land valuation and
taxation, monitoring the transfer of land,
control of land fragmentation, etc.
7. Value of land and title used to determine
insurance and loan premiums.
Requirements of cadastral surveys

•Knowledge of various cadastral survey methods

and use of equipment needed.
•Surveying and mapping equipment e.g.:
theodolite, total station, tapes, computers,
Geodetic GPS receivers, etc.
•Enabling land policy for example formalization,
harmonization, systematic adjudication and
demarcation.
Requirements of cadastral surveys

•Need for a land registration system.

Preparation of cadastral plans then deed
plans.
•Definition of land uses on land. Demarcation
of land use extents.
•Land boundary definition. Use of either fixed
or general boundaries.
•Good cadastral techniques. For example
subdivision techniques.
Cadastral Surveying: Pertinent definitions
 Pertinent definitions

•Field print •Special title

•Deed plan •Provisional
Certificate (PC)
•White page
•Blue page •Final Certificate(FC)
•Mailo Register
•Folio
Volume (MRV)
•Volume

What is a Mailo Register Volume (MRV)?

 Cadastral Survey Records

PCs and FCs were the first land records in Uganda.

PCs came from allotment lists prepared by the Lukiiko, FCs

were prepared after a cadastral survey and the production
of dimensional plans had been done. This in turn led to
the issuance of a Mailo – Owner Certificate of Title upon
its registration under the Ordinance of 1908.
Cadastral Survey Records
Cadastral Surveying: Products
 Cadastral Maps

Cadastral maps display the spatial descriptions of land-

parcel boundaries that define the location, shape and size
of land parcels within the context of a regional or national
geodetic positioning system. They also contain a unique
parcel identifier to establish the link to the land-
ownership information.
Cadastral Maps
Land Titles
Cadastral Surveying & Land Tenure
 Land Tenure

Land tenure refers to the manner in which land is

owned, occupied, used and disposed of within a
community.
There are four types of land tenure systems in
Uganda:
• Customary,
• Mailo,
• Freehold and
• Leasehold. (And Condominium property holding)
 Land Tenure: Customary

• Most dominant in Uganda.

• Land is owned and disposed of in accordance with
customary regulations.
• Specific rules of customary tenure vary according
to ethnic groups and regions.
• This tenure system also exists on its own as
communal land ownership.
•Can be converted to Freehold.
 Land Tenure: Mailo

•Introduced as a result of the 1900 Buganda

Agreement.
•Land was divided between the Kabaka, other
notables and the Protectorate Government. The
basic unit of sub-division was a square mile (hence
the name mailo).
•Originally, there were two categories of ownership
under the mailo system (private and official mailo).
 Land Tenure: Mailo

Official mailo land was transformed into public land

in 1967.
Under this system, land is held in perpetuity and a
certificate of title is issued.
The principal advantage of this system is that it
provides security of tenure, thus allowing long-term
investments
 Land Tenure: Freehold

•Ownership is also in perpertuity, and a certificate of title

is issued. The system was originally established to
address limited and quite specific requirements or
requests, say by religious organisations.
•Grants of land in freehold were made by the Crown
and later by the Uganda Land Commission.
•The grantee of land in freehold was and is entitled
to a certificate of title. Most of this land was issued
to church missionaries and academic Institutions.
 Land Tenure: Leasehold

•Land is held based on an agreement between the lessor

and the lessee.
•There are two types of leasehold tenure arrangements,
namely, private leases given to individual landlords and
official or statutory leases given to individuals and/or
corporate groups under public act terms.
•The advantage of the leasehold system is that the lessor
can attach conditions to the leases and has the right to
revoke ownership in case of abuse.
•Leasehold can be converted to Freehold.
Institutional Framework
 Institutional Framework

From a Centralized framework – to Decentralized

framework – and now running on a Quasi-
Centralized framework.
 Institutional Framework

•Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development

•Department of Surveys and Mapping
•Ministry Zonal Offices/National Land Information Centre
•Uganda Land Commission
•District Land Offices
•District Land Boards
•Area Land Committees
•Non-statutory agencies e.g. Buganda Land Board
Department of Surveys & Mapping

•In-charge of the provision of professional services

and advice on all matters pertaining to Geodesy,
Surveying, Mapping and Remote Sensing in the
country.

•National atlas.
 Uganda Land Commission

•ULC holds and manages any land in Uganda vested

in or acquired by the Government of Uganda in
accordance with the provisions of the Constitution.