Individual Corruption

Poor Angolans struggle with unclear entitlement to the land they occupy. According to the Bertelsmann Foundation 2010, internally displaced persons upon returning home found other individuals farming the land they previously owned. Earlier people occupying land were protected under the civil code even if they lacked official title but with the introduction of a new land bill passed by the parliament in August 2004 the land tenure of most urban dwellers was rendered illegal. These poor people often only hold sale and purchase documents for the plots they occupy, but these are not recognised by the authorities. In urban areas such as Luanda, many Angolans who bought land on the informal market from people without title rights thus face eviction by the government and demolition squads. Critics argue that the Land Law 2004 does not adequately address the issue of entitlement to land and that property rights remain weak and unclear. Furthermore, the above report also states that Angola continues to suffer from land grabs by the ruling class, even though a land law protecting pastoral communities forbids third parties to use areas inhabited or used for cultivation, cattle breeding or the population's livelihood. Afrol News reported that, in March 2009, the Angolan government evicted thousands of persons to make place for urban development, leaving more than three thousand families homeless in Lubango city, in the Huíla province. This elucidates the uncertainty of property rights.

Business Corruption

Enforcement of property rights is notoriously weak in Angola, resulting in considerable uncertainty over land issues, as illustrated by the Bertelsmann Foundation 2010. In fact, unclear land titles and ill-defined property rights are considered as constraints on conducting business within land administration for companies, according to the US Department of State 2011. This environment could eventually trigger opportunities for corruption, with land administration officials extracting bribes from companies.

Political Corruption

The Bertelsmann Foundation 2010 points out that the lack of transparency and corruption on a political level within land administration in Angola continues to be a problem. According to the report, the country still suffers from land grabs by high-level figures, although a land law protecting pastoral communities forbids third parties to use areas inhabited or used for cultivation, cattle breeding or the population's livelihood. Thus, senior government members, generals and even the president have taken ownership of former coffee or sisal plantations, and have engaged in large-scale cattle farming, particularly in southern Angola. However, there seems to be a marginal improvement in the situation with the implementation of decentralisation mechanisms, which give traditional authorities some power to defend their communities' land use rights, but abuses of power still occur.

Frequency

The World Bank & IFC: Doing Business 2012:
- Registering property requires a company to go through an average of 7 administrative procedures, which take an average of 184 days and cost 3.2% of the property value, three times slower but three times cheaper than the regional average.

World Economic Forum: The Global Competitiveness Report 2011-2012:
- Business executives give the protection of property rights in Angola, including financial assets, a score of 2.7 on a 7-point scale (1 'very weak' and 7 'very strong').