Evaluating the Suitability of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles to Support Communal Land Registration in Zimbabwe

Poor land registration in some regions is linked to continued reliance on conventional cadastral surveying tools, such as Total Stations and Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) equipment, which can be costly, complex, and time-consuming. Communal land in Zimbabwe remains largely outside the formal cadastral registration system despite the existence of legislation providing for its administration, surveying, and registration. Communal lands are particularly affected by unclear land rights, which can contribute to land disputes, evictions, and uncompensated land acquisitions. Documenting and recognising communal land rights is therefore essential for strengthening tenure security and reducing unnecessary and forced evictions. Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), owing to their cost-effectiveness and flexibility, are emerging as an alternative tool for cadastral surveying. However, their suitability for formal cadastral applications depends on factors including positional accuracy, cost, survey time, legal recognition, and stakeholder acceptance. This study evaluates the suitability of UAV photogrammetry for supporting communal land registration in Zimbabwe through a comparative assessment of UAV and GNSS surveying in terms of accuracy, cost, time, legal recognition, and stakeholder acceptance. UAV-derived coordinates from configurations using 20 Ground Control Points (GCPs) and 6 GCPs were compared with GNSS coordinates observed at the same points. The 20-GCP and 6-GCP configurations produced overall positional Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) values of 0.106 m and 0.096 m, respectively. The tested UAV-derived observations were within the applicable Class C accuracy limits under Zimbabwe’s Land Survey Regulations, although some observations exceeded the stricter Class B limits. The study concludes that UAV photogrammetry has considerable potential to support communal land registration in Zimbabwe, particularly for Class C surveys and large-area cadastral data acquisition. UAVs should, however, complement rather than replace GNSS, which remains important for survey control, verification, and compliance with formal cadastral requirements. Their formal adoption requires regulatory clarification, standardised technical procedures, suitable monumentation, independent quality control and institutional coordination.