Kenya explores mediation to help unlock cash held in land wrangles

Kenya is considering mediation in land and environmental disputes to unlock funds held in stalled projects.

A report by the World Bank’s review on mediation for commercial cases says a task force has been formed to look into the issue that has been blamed for prolonged land disputes involving families, individuals and companies.

Nairobi’s High Court Family Division deputy registrar Caroline Kendagor said parties in any suit were at liberty to embrace mediation upon advice from the court.

She said between April and July 2017, civil suits resolved via mediation saw projects worth Sh10.7 billion launched within Nairobi and its surroundings.

“We have since helped release another Sh770 million back into the economy through case settlement via mediation,” she said.

The court-assisted mediation follows the launch of a World Bank-funded initiative, Court Annexed Mediation Project (CAMP), that sought to ease civil case backlogs in Kenyan courts.

While court delays are blamed on shortage of magistrates and judges, with the cases taking an average of two years to resolve, the delays are also caused by the distance between courts and litigants’ homes.

World Bank task team leader for the project, Mr Nicholas Menzies, expressed optimism, saying implementation of the initiative was part of a Sh12 billion Judicial Performance Improvement Project.

Under the mediation process, courts identify three mediators from whom warring parties select one to listen to their grievances and supports them in reaching a mutually acceptable solution.

READ: Former CBK boss Nyagah wins Tatu City fraud case

The resolutions reached by the parties are later adopted by courts, making the findings legally binding.

“While the process is mandatory for selected cases, the parties are not forced to reach settlement,” said Ms Kendagor.

Last July’s review showed that about 1,550 cases were screened for mediation suitability, where a third (500) passed the test. About 150 suits were resolved by mediators, 100 terminated, 150 were being handled while about 100 were referred to court for full hearing.

The process also discourages parties against lodging appeals, thereby helping ease the cost of litigation while promoting harmony among family members and business partners.

The review found that settling cases via mediation took an average of 66 days, where parties walked out holding hands, compared with court litigation that took an average of two years and where parties left court bitter and broke.

While mediation is capped at 60 days, courts can extend the process if they deem it fit.

The review noted that mediation could help resolve complex cases as it was not bound by legalities but allowed parties to seek amicable solutions on agreeable terms.

A mediator, Mr Geoffrey Njenga, said: “Civil suits mostly arise from injured emotions that are effectively cooled during mediation. Mediation allows aggrieved parties to release emotions, and to be heard in the language they understand best,” he said.