Customary land tenure and the new land policy in Malawi

Malawi occupies an area of 118 484 square kilometres, of which 94 076 are arable land. More than 80 per cent of the country's population, estimated at nearly 11 million, depends on agriculture for its livelihood. In addition to being an important economic resource, land is valued as a basis for social security. Many urban-based Malawians expect to retire to the village and work on the land to supplement their pensions. Access to land is viewed as a fundamental right. While encroachment and boundary disputes are a common feature of smallholder agriculture in the absence of properly marked boundaries, deliberate encroachment on estates and the invasion of protected lands such as forest reserves by land hungry villagers are new phenomenona.