The ADU (Customary Land Use Certificate): The reform securing Ivorian land since 2025
Fully effective as of January 1, 2025, the ADU (Attestation de Droit d'Usage / Customary Land Use Certificate) replaces the village attestation with a single, secure document registered in the SIGFU (Urban Land Integrated Management System). A complete breakdown of this major reform.
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Introduction
In Ivory Coast (Côte d'Ivoire), land sits at the heart of many disputes and social tensions. For decades, transactions on rural and peri-urban land rested on plain "village attestations": a document recognized locally, but with no official legal value. The result was conflict, fraud, and sometimes multiple attributions for the same plot.
The Customary Land Use Certificate (ADU, Attestation de Droit d'Usage Coutumier) is the land reform the Ivorian State put in place to get out of that situation. It took effect on July 1, 2024, and has been issued free of charge since January 1, 2025. Its purpose is to replace the village attestation with a single document, registered, and recognized by the administration. According to the Ministry of Construction (National ADU Campaign, Agboville, May 22 and 23, 2025), the ADU is now the only document the State recognizes to certify a customary right over land from a subdivision.
"The objective is to end multiple attributions on the same plot," emphasized Minister Bruno Nabagné Koné (Aboisso, May 16, 2025, Act 1 of the ADU Campaign).
The texts that establish the ADU
Three texts carry this reform: two decrees from December 2021, and a circular note from April 2025 that settles the fate of subdivisions approved earlier.
1. Decree No. 2021-784 of December 8, 2021: the procedural framework
This text governs how subdivision plans are drawn up, approved, and applied. It is the one that establishes the ADU as the single attestation model for every subdivision involving village communities, across the whole country.
Its Article 31 also changes the mechanics of titling. Land titles are now created upstream, as soon as the subdivision plan is approved, rather than only at the end of the acquisition procedure.
2. Decree No. 2021-862 of December 15, 2021: the technological framework
This second decree establishes the Urban Land Integrated Management System (SIGFU, Système Intégré de Gestion du Foncier Urbain). Every ADU is registered there and generated with a unique digital identifier (IDUFCI, Identifiant Unique du Foncier de Côte d'Ivoire) attached to the allocated lot, in accordance with Decree No. 2019-221 of March 13, 2019.
The document itself is produced on a secure form supplied by the administration. Its identifier lets a buyer or a notary check its authenticity directly online, without going through an intermediary.
3. Circular Note No. 0174/MCLU-CAB of April 1, 2025: the bridge with the old system
This note implements the provisions on securing customary information for subdivisions approved before the massive titling reform. It extends to those older subdivisions the protections the ADU brings.
How the ADU works in practice
Mandatory tripartite signature
To be valid, the ADU must carry three signatures: that of the village chief, that of the president of the Village Land Management Committee (CVGFR, Comité Villageois de Gestion Foncière Rurale, as defined by Decree No. 2019-266), and that of the subdivider. This triple signature closes the door on the unilateral and fraudulent allocations that characterized the old system.
"The ADU is in no way a threat to community rights. On the contrary, it constitutes legal recognition of customary rights and protects buyers against double attributions," clarified Minister Bruno Koné to the National Assembly (June 17, 2025). Throughout the 2025 ADU Campaign he repeated that "the ADU removes no power from Traditional Chiefs".
Registration in the SIGFU
Each ADU is registered digitally in the SIGFU with a 20-character IDUFCI attached to the lot, a security QR code that opens online verification, and the full history of the operations recorded on the plot.
Bridge to ownership
The ADU does not confer full ownership. It counts as provisional recognition of customary rights, and it has become the base document for applying for the Definitive Concession Decree (ACD, Arrêté de Concession Définitive). The ACD incorporates the creation of the Land Title by the Land Property and Mortgages Registry (CPFH, Conservation de la Propriété Foncière et des Hypothèques); once published in the Land Register, it is unassailable and imprescriptible. There is no hierarchy between the ACD and the Land Title: the same act, at two successive stages of the same procedure.
One step was added in 2025. According to the Aboisso Regional Construction Directorate (MCLU Newsletter, August 2025), since March 31, 2025, every ACD application must be preceded by a land position request with the Single Land Window (GUF, Guichet Unique du Foncier) in your locality. Plan for it in your timetable.
On timelines, the texts of the Ivorian administration (BÂTIR No. 004, Jan-Mar 2022) set the delivery of an ACD on an approved subdivision at 180 calendar days at the MCLU, excluding taxes. In practice, that can run much longer, for reasons that are not always easy to pin down.
ADU and village attestation: what changed since July 1, 2024
| Criterion | Old village attestation | New ADU |
|---|---|---|
| Legal basis | None (customary) | Decrees No. 2021-784 and No. 2021-862, plus Circular Note 0174/2025 |
| Issuer | Village chief alone | Triple signature (chief, CVGFR, subdivider) |
| Registration | No centralized register | SIGFU with a unique IDUFCI |
| Verification | Impossible | Online via QR code |
| Physical security | Plain paper | Secure form supplied by the administration |
| Recognition | Local only | National, the only document the State recognizes for a customary right on a subdivision |
| Anti-fraud protection | None (multiple sales possible) | IDUFCI, which blocks double attributions |
| Cost | Variable (often diverted) | Free since January 1, 2025 |
National ADU Campaign 2025: taking the reform to the field
According to the MCLU Newsletter of August 2025, the 4th edition of the MCLU Open Days (JPO, Journées Portes Ouvertes) was coupled with the ADU Campaign. The tour covered 16 cities from May 16 to August 1, 2025:
Songon, Dabou, Abidjan, Grand-Bassam, Bonoua, Anyama, Yamoussoukro, Korhogo, San-Pédro, Abengourou, Daloa, Adzopé, Aboisso, Agboville, Bouaké, Man.
Tour theme: "More secure urban land and sustainable urban development, drivers of social stability".
At the closing in Man (August 1, 2025), the Minister hammered the point home: "You must no longer buy land in a subdivision that is not approved".
Why the ADU is real progress but not enough
What the ADU brings
The IDUFCI identifies each lot uniquely, which makes a double sale far harder to set up. The SIGFU keeps the history of the operations recorded on the plot, and any buyer can authenticate the ADU online before paying a single franc.
A lot registered in the SIGFU can also more easily be used as bank collateral, because it is identified without ambiguity.
What the ADU does not cover
It does not confer definitive legal ownership of the land. It is not a land title registered in the Land Register. And it does not protect against expropriation on grounds of public utility.
The path from the ADU to the Land Title
The ADU is a transitional step, not an end in itself. Here is the full route, stage by stage.
Step 1: obtain the ADU
The ADU is issued when a lot in a subdivision is allocated. It carries the mandatory triple signature and is registered in the SIGFU with its IDUFCI.
Step 2: have the land surveyed by an approved surveyor
A surveyor-expert registered with the professional Order carries out the topographic survey and installs the official boundary markers. The precision required is 0 to 99 cm for at least 1/10th of the boundary points (Decree No. 2023-238).
Step 3: request a land position
Since March 31, 2025, before any ACD application, the applicant must file a land position request with the GUF in their locality. This is a mandatory preliminary step introduced by the MCLU (MCLU Newsletter, August 2025).
Step 4: assemble the ACD application file
The file includes the ADU, the boundary plan, identity documents, and proof of tax payment. The technical file must include a digital file compatible with IDUFCI.
Step 5: file with the Single Land Window
The GUF (Tower D, ground floor, Abidjan Plateau) processes the file. The Control Service checks that the subdivision is approved, that the ADU is authentic, and that the lot is not subject to a stay.
Step 6: obtain the ACD
The ACD is signed by the Minister of Construction for the Abidjan district, and by the Prefect outside Abidjan. Since January 2024, that signature has been electronic, through the MCLU's SIGNE platform. The Ministry has moved from roughly 17,000 ACDs issued in 2020 to a target of 24,000 to 30,000 a year (BÂTIR No. 008, Jan-Mar 2024). As a field indicator, the South Comoé Regional Directorate issued 5,760 ACDs in 2024 alone (MCLU Newsletter, August 2025).
Step 7: publication in the Land Register
The ACD is published in the Land Register by the Land Registry. The land title obtained is definitive, unassailable, and imprescriptible (Article 3, Decree No. 2023-238).
What does moving from the ADU to the Land Title cost?
Costs vary with the locality, the area, and the intermediaries involved. Here is the order of magnitude.
| Expense item | Estimate |
|---|---|
| ADU (since January 1, 2025) | Free |
| Surveying (approved surveyor) | 150,000 to 400,000 FCFA |
| Technical file compatible with IDUFCI | 100,000 to 200,000 FCFA |
| Land position request (since 31/03/2025) | Per the local GUF rate |
| Transfer price and land publication taxes | Variable (depending on location and area) |
| GUF fees | ~101,000 FCFA (ACD) |
| Notary fees | 8 to 10% of the transfer price |
For an estimate matched to your own plot, use our land cost simulator.
Our recommendations
- Require a compliant ADU: triple signature (village chief, CVGFR president, subdivider), IDUFCI, and secure form.
- Check it online. The QR code or the IDUFCI is enough to authenticate it in the SIGFU.
- File your land position request. It has been mandatory since March 31, 2025, and it comes before the ACD.
- Do not stop at the ADU. Start the ACD procedure straight away.
- Have the land surveyed as soon as you buy. Surveying is the first physical proof of your hold on the plot.
- Go through a notary, even for land that has nothing but an ADU.
- Be wary of old village attestations. Since July 1, 2024, only the ADU is recognized by the State for subdivisions. The old ones have to be regularized, including through circular note 0174/2025 for subdivisions approved before the reform. See also the 5 pitfalls to avoid when buying land.
Conclusion
The ADU changes the terms of land security in Ivory Coast. Tripartite signature, registration in the SIGFU, a unique identifier for each lot: the old village attestation system left doors open, and these mechanisms close them.
It remains a transitional step, all the same. To secure an acquisition for the long term, the route runs all the way to the ACD published in the Land Register, which is the published Land Title: ownership that is definitive, enforceable against all, and on which a bank can register a mortgage.
At Capital Foncier, we support our investors at every stage: verification of the ADU in the SIGFU, the land position request, then the ACD published in the Land Register, which is the published Land Title.
Official sources:
- Ordinance No. 2013-481 of 07/02/2013: urban land domain
- Decree No. 2021-784 of 12/08/2021: subdivision procedures (Article 31)
- Decree No. 2021-862 of 12/15/2021: creation of the SIGFU
- Decree No. 2019-221 of 03/13/2019: creation of the IDUFCI
- Decree No. 2019-266: Village Land Management Committees
- Circular Note No. 0174/MCLU-CAB of 04/01/2025: securing customary information
- Magazine BÂTIR No. 008 (Jan-Mar 2024), Ministry of Construction
- MCLU Newsletter No. 028 (August 2025), National ADU Campaign
- construction.gouv.ci, the MCLU website
- idufci.construction.gouv.ci, the IDUFCI platform
To learn more:
?Frequently asked questions
Since when has the ADU been in effect?+
The ADU has been in effect since July 1, 2024, and it has been issued free of charge since January 1, 2025. According to the Ministry of Construction, it has been since then the only document the State recognizes to certify a customary right over land from a subdivision. Old village attestations no longer hold for new transactions and must be regularized.
How do I verify the authenticity of an ADU?+
Each ADU is produced on a secure form and registered in the SIGFU with a unique IDUFCI. You can check its authenticity online through the QR code printed on the document, or by consulting the SIGFU with the lot's IDUFCI. Never accept an ADU without those security features.
Who must sign the ADU for it to be valid?+
The ADU requires three signatures, all mandatory: the village chief, the president of the Village Land Management Committee (CVGFR), and the subdivider. An ADU without that triple signature is not valid.
What is the mandatory land position request since March 31, 2025?+
It is a step that comes before any ACD application, introduced by the MCLU and documented by the Aboisso Regional Construction Directorate (MCLU Newsletter, August 2025). It requires the applicant to file a land position request with the Single Land Window first, before filing the ACD application itself.
Can one sell land with just an ADU?+
Transactions do happen on the basis of an ADU, but it confers only provisional recognition of customary rights, not full ownership. The buyer then has to take the ACD procedure forward. We strongly recommend going through a notary and checking the ADU in the SIGFU before any transaction.
What is the difference between the ADU and the Rural Land Certificate?+
The Rural Land Certificate is issued by AFOR (Rural Land Agency) after an official land survey (Decree No. 2019-266). It belongs to the rural land domain. The ADU concerns urban and peri-urban subdivisions involving village communities. Both lead to a land title, but by separate routes that must not be crossed.
Are the announced timelines respected?+
The official timelines (180 calendar days for the ACD at the MCLU) are those set by the texts of the Ivorian administration. In practice, they can run much longer, for reasons that are not always easy to pin down. Anticipating, and checking the progress of your file with the GUF regularly, is what works best.
Does the ADU protect against expropriation by the State?+
No. The ADU does not protect against expropriation on grounds of public utility. Once registered in the Land Register, a land title is fully enforceable against third parties, and even then the State may expropriate subject to just and prior compensation. With an ADU, compensation will be significantly lower than with a land title.
