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Saturday, July 27, 2024

Obsolete System, Corruption Delay Land Title Registration

This Week

The Head of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment commented on the delay of land registration during the 2nd National Assembly Session on 22 July. 

Mr. Bounsom Songvilai, Director of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment, said that the transition from analog to modern systems has been difficult.

While the department has so far issued 34,487 land titles, technical difficulties have caused the registration of land titles to be delayed.

The difficulties with sketching land and storing information appear to be caused by an incomplete database, a virus in the software, an unstable internet connection, and an insufficient number of servers.

Mr. Bounsom accepted that the falsification of documents and land title registrations by corrupt officials and brokers also slows down the process.

Laos has lost hundreds of million dollars to corruption since 2016 according to the report the State Inspection Authority released in collaboration with provincial authorities. The report was based on a complete audit of infrastructure development projects, mining and timber processing firms, as well as land use and management.

Of the massive monetary losses to corruption since 2016, authorities have only been able to recover LAK 1.82 trillion (approximately USD 152 million) from corrupt officials who embezzled it.

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