Business Game Changers Radio with Sarah Westall: Bitland Using Blockchain to End Africa's Land Corruption

As demand for land and other resources continues to rise, investors look to Africa. It is no surprise as Africa has the largest area of arable land in the world. Unfortunately, many problems persist due to Africa’s lack of documentation recording land ownership. This has led to many corrupt activities including land grabs by large foreign investors and corrupt government officials facilitating illegal transactions. Other problems include landowners selling land they do not own or selling the same lot to multiple investors.

Africa is not alone with this problem. In fact, most third world countries have poor land ownership records. The lack of good records can cause major upheavals when foreign owners take over the land or when disputes over ownership occurs. It has led to inequality, food insecurity, displacement of communities, social instability and unequal power relations between governments and foreign investors.

Today’s show we talk with Elliot Hedman, Chief Operating Officer of Bitland, a company whose mission is to clean up landownership records throughout Africa. They have taken blockchain technology, usually associated with bitcoin, and used it to create secure ledgers for surveying land and securing deeds. Bitland recently receive the 2016 Netexpo Award, which identifies 10 start-ups worldwide for innovative technology.

You can see more about Elliot and his company at www.bitland.world

After we speak with Elliot, we talk with Lou Altman, CEO of Next Level, about the problem with running a business backward. He explains what that means and how businesses continue to make this mistake. He also shares three techniques to build client retention over the long term.

You can learn more about Lou Altman and his company at www.next-level.com