Lands, Housing and Urban Development Minister Judith Nabakooba has urged Ugandans to regularly update their land records, register their property and embrace estate planning to prevent ownership disputes and safeguard wealth for future generations.
Nabakooba made the remarks on July 16 while officiating at the TARA Estate Planning Symposium, organised by Tara Advocates at Arirang Hotel in Kampala under the theme, Beyond Wealth: Structuring for Continuity, Crisis and Legacy.
During the event, she also launched the Estate Planning Association, a professional body bringing together lawyers, accountants, trustees, bankers, insurers, financial advisers and policymakers to promote sound estate management and public awareness on succession planning.
The minister said proper estate planning ensures that wealth is preserved and passed on smoothly, reducing conflicts that often arise after the death or incapacity of property owners.
“Every generation should aim to leave the next better prepared than it was, and estate planning safeguards that goal,” Nabakooba said.
She called for stronger collaboration among institutions responsible for recognising, protecting and facilitating the lawful transfer of property.
Nabakooba noted that property extends beyond land to include businesses, investments, shares and other physical and digital assets, all of which require proper documentation and succession planning.
While emphasising the importance of land registration as proof of ownership, she said a land title alone cannot resolve succession disputes.
“A certificate of title confirms ownership, but it does not determine who will manage the property during incapacity, whether it should be retained, sold, transferred into a trust or held through a company,” she said.
She warned against the common practice of leaving family land registered in the name of deceased owners, saying this often fuels disputes among beneficiaries.
The minister said government has improved access to land information by digitising records, expanding the Land Information System and decentralising services through the ministry’s 22 zonal offices.
According to Nabakooba, the system has so far processed more than 760,000 land transactions and digitised over 820,000 land records.
She said the reforms would enhance transparency, reduce loss of records, strengthen investor confidence and support sustainable wealth management.
The minister also urged landowners to formalise all property-related information, including agreements, boundaries and verbal gifts, noting that failure to document such arrangements often leads to prolonged court battles that delay development.
She cited the Judiciary Performance Report for the quarter ending March 2026, which recorded 7,279 pending cases in the Land Division of the High Court, about half of which were classified as backlog.
Where succession becomes contentious, Nabakooba encouraged families to appoint trustees to manage property on behalf of beneficiaries, noting that trusteeship is provided for under the Trustees Act, the Trustees Incorporation Act and the Trustees Corporation Act. She added that trustees should be renewed every five years.
National Planning Authority Executive Director Dr Joseph Muvawala, who delivered the keynote address, pledged the authority’s support to the Estate Planning Association as it promotes responsible estate management across the country.
Tara Advocates Managing Partner Damalie Tibugwisa said the symposium aimed to change public perceptions that estate planning is only associated with death.
Instead, she said, the firm wants to position estate planning as a national responsibility that ensures orderly succession and protects the vision of property owners across generations.
“We have all seen the late Paul Kafeero’s DNA saga that has silenced the nation. People fought over a dead body and spent months in court determining where he should be buried,” Tibugwisa said, illustrating the consequences of inadequate succession planning.
She said the initiative comes at a time when many long-established family businesses are transitioning leadership from founders to the next generation, a process that often creates disagreements over the future direction of the enterprises.
Tibugwisa said Tara Advocates intends to expand estate planning awareness campaigns to grassroots communities to help more Ugandans understand the importance of planning for the future and protecting family wealth.
