ZAMBIA and Kenya have started the process aimed at publishing online cadastre data showing records of ownership and value of properties in the mining sector to reduce opportunities for corruption and improve transparency.

Spatial Dimension managing director Bill Feast said his organisation had been engaged in the exercise and was currently working with the Ministry of Mines, Energy and Water Development in Lusaka and its Kenyan counterpart to create an online mining cadastre system.

"This is also the first step towards a transactional online mining cadastre system for Zambia," he said.

Mr Feast said Zambia and Kenya joined a growing group of countries that had decided to put practical effect to internal efforts to drive operational efficiencies, improve stakeholder communications, reduce opportunities for corruption and improve transparency within their respective mining sectors.

"It is exciting that Zambia, a leading copper producer and Kenya, an emerging exploration destination, have both decided to leverage their investments in Flexi Cadastre to publish their mining cadastre data online," he said.

Mr Feast said the move taken by the two governments was in line with Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) and helped them to improve the data quality within their mining cadastre systems through effective stakeholder communication. Cadastre data is up-to-date land information system containing a record of interests in land such as rights, restrictions and responsibilities.

It usually includes a geometric description of land parcels linked to other records describing the nature of the interests, the ownership or control of those interests, and often the value of the parcel and its improvements.

Cadastre data is also established for fiscal purposes like valuation and equitable taxation, which include legal purposes for conveyance, apart from assisting the management of land and land use for planning.

It further caters for other administrative purposes and enables sustainable development and environmental protection. The South Africa-based, Spatial Dimension is an internationally-recognised software development company.