Digital Cadastres Facilitating Land Information Management

4. Research Methodology 
This study utilizes the case study approach described in (Yin, 2003) and carried out for prior 
bachelor theses at Midlands State University in Zimbabwe. Three organisations were investigated 
namely City of Mutare (CoM), City of Gweru (CoG) and the Department of the Surveyor-General 
(DSG). CoG and CoM are local government authorities or municipalities and the unit of analysis is 
the cadastre. The cadastre was also the unit of analysis at the Department of the Surveyor-General. 
The case study approach was employed to serve the following purposes: (1) to describe the 
cadastral and town planning processes, (2) to identify the major actors in the land development 
process, (3) to describe the record keeping mechanisms and (4) to explain the information sharing 
mechanisms. Data was collected through structured questionnaires coupled by personal interviews. 
Supplementary data was accessed through collecting reports, policy documents, photographs and 
participant observation. The data used for the study dates back to fieldwork findings from 
(Kurwakumire, 2007) that was collected and compiled from CoM and the DSG in 2005. Further 
field work at the DSG, CoM and CoG was carried out in the period September 2011 to November 
2012 in the context of land information systems, digital lodgement of survey records and webGIS to 
support cadastral and planning applications. Both the 2005 and 2011 surveys examined the status of 
the cadastral systems and service delivery mechanisms. The 2011 to 2012 survey was used in 
(Kurwakumire, 2013a) where the line of thought was in introducing a webGIS application to 
improve access and availability of spatial data at CoG. However, such a webGIS requires a base of 
either a digital cadastral layer or a digital cadastre where all data sets and other services are built on 
top which is the essence of this current study.
This study utilizes mostly secondary data used in other related studies and that collected through 
interactions with stakeholders within planning and cadastral offices. Even though, the secondary 
data was collected as part of other studies, there was sufficient information to support this current 
study. The author has a land surveying background in Zimbabwe and has interacted with the DSG, 
CoG and CoM since 2004 and has in-depth knowledge of the workings of the cadastral system and 

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South African Journal of Geomatics, Vol. 3, No. 1, January 2014 
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land law in Zimbabwe. The author also carried out internships at both CoG and CoM in the period 
2002 to 2005 and has continued on research on cadastral systems in Zimbabwe through supervision 
of bachelor thesis at Midlands State University in the period 2011 to end of 2012. As such, primary 
data collection was not required for this paper which relies on the personal experience and 
reflections of the author and available secondary data from other prior studies. 
In order to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the cadastre, there is need to first re-
engineer cadastral business processes to modernize the system. Reengineering relates to reforms in 
individual processes which contribute to the provision of cadastral information or facilitate the 
fulfillment of a request for a particular land transaction. The motivation behind re-engineering 
discrete processes is the fact that, the efficiency of the whole cadastral system as a whole is 
depended on the efficiency of the individual units. Thus discrete units need shorter turn-around 
times while providing data that is compatible for use by the next units. In this way, there is efficient 
delivery of the end product to the client who can be a property developer or buyer. Improved land 
information management and efficient land transactions should result as not only the result of the 
re-engineering process but of the development of the digital cadastral system. The introduction of 
the digital cadastre should result in positive impact on the society, economy and land 
administration.