Tuesday, January 19 – A team from the Cayman Islands’ Lands and Survey Department is in the Territory conducting a comprehensive review of government’s land registration system with a view to developing an Electronic Land Registration Application for implementation in the Virgin Islands.
The review also includes improving the use of data gleaned through surveying and valuation functions, and the Geographic Information System.
The team, headed by Mr. Kearney S. Gomez, MBE JP, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of District Administration, Works and Gender Affairs met with the Minister for Natural Resources and Labour, Hon. Omar W. Hodge, senior management and department heads under the ministry.
Mr. Gomez, along with Mr. Alan Jones, Director of Lands and Survey and Mrs. Aliceann Kirchman, Registrar of Lands also paid courtesy calls on the Premier and Minister of Finance, Hon. Ralph T. O’Neal, OBE, and Deputy Premier and Minister for Health and Social Development Hon. Dancia Penn OBE, QC before he left the Territory on Thursday.
The remaining delegates Ms. Carleen Ghio, GIS Programmer Analyst and Project Manager; Mr. Ryan Pream, Information Technology Specialist and Mr. Iain Franklin, Land Registry Specialist, along with Mr. Alan Jones and Mrs. Aliceann Kirchman are still in the Territory to continue the review of the present land registration system.
During a meeting last Wednesday staff from the Departments of Information Technology, Land Registry, Survey, Inland Revenue and Town and Country Planning received an in-depth presentation on the proposed electronic system.
Speaking on behalf of the Department of Land Registry, Mrs. Erica Smith-Penn underscored the point that although the exercise will focus on immediately improving some functions of the department, land conveyancing and registration depend on services provided by other government agencies.
Mrs. Smith Penn told the Department of Information and Public Relations, “Information that was previously only available in paper form will also become accessible in electronic format and online.”
Other benefits of the Electronic Land Registration Application are simplified workflows, preservation and security of vital records in electronic format and the ability to offer services in a more timely and efficient manner.
During the remainder of the stay, the visiting team from the Cayman Islands will meet separately with different government bodies to determine the requirements to implement the Electronic Land Registration Application before leaving this Friday.
As the lead body, the Land Registry is the government arm responsible for the administration of land registration within the Territory. With the implementation of the Electronic Land Registration Application, the Department of Land Registry will better be able to record the Territory’s land transactions while strengthening efforts to modernise the existing system by providing accurate electronic data for land ownership.
British Virgin Islands News