he instinct of a regional investor is to run the diligence that worked in the home market. The lesson of repeated work across the East African Community is that the diligence does not, quite, port. The categories are the same; the documents that prove them are different in every jurisdiction.
The non-negotiables, regardless of jurisdiction
- Title, the official search, the historical chain, and the boundary survey, in that order.
- Encumbrances, charges, leases, easements, caveats, court orders, and pending litigation.
- Land use and planning, zoning, permitted use, development conditions, and outstanding planning notices.
- Tax, land rates, stamp duty status, capital gains and any sectoral levies.
- Anti-money laundering, source-of-funds documentation that will satisfy the bank funding the transaction.
Jurisdiction-specific notes
In Kenya, the controlled-transaction regime under the Land Control Act for agricultural land, and the foreign-ownership restriction on freehold land, remain live considerations. In Uganda, mailo and leasehold distinctions matter and tenant rights survive transfers. In Tanzania, the right of occupancy is the foundation, and granted versus customary rights produce very different transactional questions. In Rwanda, the lease-based system means the diligence runs on the lease terms, not on freehold concepts.
Local counsel is not optional
Regional acquisitions are rarely well-served by a single firm alone. The model that works is a lead counsel coordinating local counsel in each jurisdiction, with a single point of accountability to the investor. We act as both, leading regional transactions, and acting as local counsel for transactions led elsewhere, and the structure matters less than the discipline of the coordination.