Ripple's Attempt to Tokenize Colombian Land Stalls due to the New Administration

A collaboration between the Colombian government and Ripple Labs to place land titles on the blockchain appears to have stalled after the project was "deprioritized" by the new administration.

The project was first announced by the previous government's Ministry of IT and Communications, just two weeks before the newly elected President Gustavo Petro took office.

According to a Forbes report dated August 30, the National Lands Agency's interim head, Juan Manuel Noruega Martnez, stated that the project is not one of the agency's strategic goals for 2022.

The shift is surprising considering that Colombia's new president is considered to be pro-cryptocurrencies and has previously expressed his support for them.

The collaboration, which includes Colombia's National Land Agency, Ripple, and software development firm Peersyst Technology, is intended to tokenize real estate on the blockchain in order to simplify property search operations, establish transparent and cheaper property title administration, and more efficient financing and payment processing.

An order to establish property titles for small and medium rural properties was included in the 2016 peace agreement that formally marked the end of Colombia's conflict. According to a 2013 survey, just one out of every two small farmers has official land rights.

This lack of formality discourages farmers from investing in land and prohibits land from being used as collateral for borrowing. A blockchain ledger for real estate was created to address this issue by giving landowners security and an incentive to invest in their property.

According to Peersyst Technology, the registry was introduced on July 1 following a year of development.

On July 30, Peersyst announced that the first deed had been posted to the ledger, with the land certificate resembling any other except for the QR code included in it that verifies the certificate on the blockchain. Anyone may use the QR code to locate the property deed on the XRP blockchain.

There have been no additional developments regarding the collaborative project. Media outlets contacted Ripple Labs for comment on any developments but received no immediate response.

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