2005:
126,000 Barrio Families Received Land Titles for their Homes
The booming oil industry in the early 1900s created a
disincentive to maintaining agricultural production. Farmworkers who once
worked in the countryside moved to the cities. There was a shortage of housing
in the cities and shanties were built on vacant land on the hillsides. The open
land on the hillsides was a mixture of privately-owned and public parcels. The
new residents did not pay for the land nor did they pay rent. Structures became permanent, built
with wood and concrete. The government provided some basic services (roads,
electricity, bus transportation, schools). By 2002, it was estimated that up to
60% of Venezuela’s population of 26 million people lived in these barrios. Some
people had occupied the same house for decades.[1]
The Urban
Land Committees (CTU-Comites de Tierras Urbanas) were initiated with Hugo
Chavez’s presidential decree 1,666 on February 4, 2002. The decree specified
that Venezuelans who lived in self-built homes could appeal to the government
for title to the land.[1]
The main mechanism for acquiring title to the
land were the land committees, where 100 to 200 families that lived in a
contiguous area elected about seven individuals to represent their community.
The committees then registered with the National Technical Office for the
Regularization of Urban Land Tenancy. The technical office then provided the
committees with training and help to measure out the families’ plots of land
and to initiate the process of acquiring title to the land.[1] Not all could
receive titles because many homes were on unstable ground or had competing
ownership claims.
About 5,000 land committees were established. As of mid-2005,
the National Technical Office had issued over 84,000 titles to 126,000
families, benefiting about 630,000 barrio inhabitants.[1] With the titles, economic activity, such as
taking out bank loans, would be easier.
The Urban
Land Committees were encouraged to apply for government grants for developing community
public spaces and for electrical and water projects. Altogether by the end of
2005, the land committees had submitted 1,200 grant applications for about $50
million. [1] At large meetings of the land committees, President Chavez handed
out land titles to residents and announced grants for community projects. [2][3]
2.Wilpert,
Gregory, Chavez Presented Over 3,000 Titles as Part of Venezuela’s Urban
Land Reform, Venezuelanalysis, 10/25/2004.
3.Ellis,
Edward, Venezuela’s Chavez Hands out Property Rights, Venezuelanalysis, September
17, 2010.
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