REAL ESTATE CADASTRE DIGITALIZATION

INTERVIEW

Borko Drašković, director of the Republic Geodetic Authority

DIGITALIZATION OF THE CADASTER OPENS A NEW BUSINESS ERA

The real estate cadaster is nearing completion of the implementation of a new information system. Borko Drašković, director of the Republic Geodetic Authority, explains what benefits we already have from digitalization and what benefits we will have once the new system is fully operational

Text by: GORDANA KNEŽEVIĆ MONAŠEVIĆ Photo: MILOŠ LUŽANIN

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lthough we regularly receive information from the Republic Geodetic Authority (RGA) about significant changes in the way this institution operates, users’ perception of the Real Estate Cadastre is somehow altering very slowly. Borko Drašković, the director of RGA, who has been implementing cadastre reform with great enthusiasm for the past six years, is well aware that the fundamental issues that slow down the procedures are

hidden. It is why citizens believe that some cases are being intentionally prolonged. He is certain that putting the new technology to its full potential will radically change this issue. “You know, we live in a country where everyone is interested in two things: football and cadaster. And yet, few people are aware that the land administration system is the most complex system in the state administration and is a reflection of the state of each country. Land administration is a process of determining, recording, archiving and distributing information on human and real estate relations. Until recently, the system as it existed before was a major source of national problems. Due to the unsettled situation, it was extremely difficult to complete infrastructure projects, develop the state administration system and even ensure ownership of the real estate. The fact that Serbia had more than four million unregistered buildings and more than three million inhabitants without an address speaks for itself, “ Drašković said at the beginning of the interview.

RGA has been working on digitalization for several years. The new information system will replace the old one from 30 years ago. What progress has been made so far?

— The new information system is being completed and is currently in its final third phase, which will last two years. Developing such an information system is not an easy task, bearing in mind that two previous attempts have already failed. It is structured so that each phase functions as a whole and that each one contributes to the development of real estate management systems. To achieve this, the institution needed to undergo four reforms: personnel, technical-technological, procedural and legislative. The fifth and final is the financial reform, the transformation of the RGA into an executive self-financing organization that operates based on covering costs. The most important to us as employees in the RGA is that the citizens have great trust in the RGA. Highly ranked 18th place in Serbia on the Alexa, says that citizens often use digital services on the RGA website. Our second site, GeoSerbia, is in 79th place, making us one of the most visited state institutions.

You have recently introduced an automated claim recording system. What does this novelty mean and who will benefit the most from it?

— The reason for introducing such a system is that the current method of recording claims by notaries, courts, geodetic organizations, and other professional users of the RGA has resulted in the omission of necessary data – such as the cadastral plot number, facility number, or the number of the part of the facility, as well as the number of the cadastral municipality. This has resulted in inaccuracies, jeopardizing residents’ legal security while also slowing down the cadaster registration procedure. As a result, citizens and the economy suffered, as did

the RGA, which was forced to manually re-enter these items into the system, resulting in extra effort and the possibility of errors. Thanks to new digital processes and controls, such errors are no longer possible, so RGA will solve requests more efficiently. We advise citizens and all service users to obtain this record number because it is the sole proof and legal certainty that the procedure of determining the right has been completed and that the cadaster registration has begun.

INTRODUCING AN EXTRACT FROM THE LAND REGISTER DATABASE INSTEAD OF THE REAL ESTATE FOLIO IN THE LAND REGISTER SAVED SERBIAN CITIZENS MORE THAN 36 MILLION EUROS IN JUST THREE YEARS, THE AMOUNT THEY WOULD HAVE PAID IN ADMINISTRATIVE FEES BEFORE THE CADASTER’S DIGITALIZATION

The new information system is one of the most modern and complex systems. What are its advantages and how much does the whole digitalization process cost?

— The new Central Information System for the Cadaster of Real Estate is developing in cooperation with the World Bank within the project “Real Estate Management in Serbia.” The assessment that it is one of the world’s most modern

Satellite image of Belgrade and complex systems did not come from the RGA, it is the opinion of international experts.

The entire real estate management reform costs about 57 million euros. This number seems too big, but it’s justified. Simply by introducing an extract from the land register database instead of the real estate folio in the land register, and making it available via web service to all public sector bodies and holders of public authority, RGA saved Serbian citizens more than 36 million euros

in just three years, the amount they would have paid in administrative fees before the cadaster’s digitalization, and more than five million hours compared to the old system when they had to obtain documents in person. You will admit that the project does not cost much concerning the benefits it brings. The point is that the new incorruptible cadaster system digitalizes not only the cadaster and RGA but also the systems of those who have interaction with real estate and geospatial data, which is the entire public sector. We are unique in this approach, and the entire international professional public is monitoring the RGA reform in Serbia.

TODAY, THE AVERAGE TIME TO RESOLVE CASES IS LESS THAN FOUR DAYS, MAKING OUR SYSTEM THE FIFTH IN THE WORLD

What has proven to be the biggest weakness in the work of the Cadaster so far, what have the clients complained about the most? Will the new system help you overcome that?

— The backlog of cases, imprecise and unenforceable decisions of state bodies, courts and local self-government in the process of defining property rights are the issues we face. Backlog cases will continue to exist until cases that have been in citizens’ drawers for 30 years and were never submitted for cadaster registration are solved, or until the existing administrative system, which allows the case to be delayed indefinitely, is terminated. Backlog cases are the consequence of the implementation of the old law and processes that can be corrupt. If that law is not changed, it may take an eternity to resolve backlog cases. Only when the matter reaches the cadaster does the problem of imprecise and unenforceable solutions become apparent. Blaming the cadaster for such problems is the same as blaming the scale because we have a few extra pounds. The real cause of the problem is masked and creates the illusion among citizens that the cadaster won’t resolve cases on purpose. We see a clear picture now, and we are working hard to complete the system’s implementation and maximum capacity as soon as possible. We are fully committed to the protection of the property of all registered real estate, and at the same time, we strive to enable fast and reliable registration of new real estate. In terms of reliability, we are currently ranked 10th in Europe and 14th in the world.

How many unresolved cases currently exist in the cadaster, and can we expect this congestion to be reduced to a standard level by implementing the new information system? If yes, when can we expect this to happen?

— An information system isn’t a magic wand that can fix all our issues. There were no records on the number of cases before the im-

In 2019, Serbia took first place in Europe in terms of progress in transparency when it comes to real estate, says Borko Drašković plementation of the information system; instead, they were held in drawers, which provided fertile ground for the development of corruption. Only after the implementation of the information system, we finally reach the actual number of unresolved cases, which in September 2020 amounted to 705.000. Despite a dramatic increase in the number of new cases, thanks to the digitalization of the Republic Geodetic Authority’s services, the number of cases decreased to 450.000 in less than a year. Old cases are being solved according to the old law, which stipulates imprecise and confusing analog business processes, as opposed to the new digital processes, which have been in effect since 2018. They allow the cadaster to settle requests in four days and appeals in 60 days. The RGA believes that fixing the problem may be accomplished by the amendments to the law and implementing new digital methods because the old, corrupt law, which is still in effect, is a stumbling barrier for cadastral reform.

When the new software is fully implemented, the entire country of Serbia will be connected to a single central system, as opposed to the present 176 databases. What does that mean? Will it be possible to get all the data in any database with one press of a button and to complete the whole procedure in the shortest possible time?

— It has already been accomplished within the first two phases of the implementation of the new system. As I mentioned, the average time for resolving cases is less than four days, making our system the fifth in the world, while it used to be longer than 49 days. In terms of transparency, it is already possible to obtain all necessary real estate data at the press of a button. In 2019, Serbia took first place in Europe in terms of progress in transparency when it comes to real estate, thanks to the cadaster and the digital platform GeoSerbia, where all information about real estate and rights of Serbian citizens is available. So far, a lot has been accomplished in the area of reliability. Several types of fraud, manipulations and falsifications have been disabled. There is no corruption anymore. Every activity is monitored, and a digital trace is recorded using a document management system (DMS) and a content management system (CMS). We know who did what in the system, and any unprofessional or malicious action is easily detected.

INTRODUCTION TO BLOCKCHAIN TECHNOLOGY

RGA users will have access to all data and services through the central database. It is already possible to do that with the real estate cadaster database application, address register, digital cadastral plan, and price register. However, with the implementation of the new system, these will reach a whole new level. “It will no longer be necessary to make inquiries of individual real estate because the system will inform about the changes, the data will be structured, and it will be possible to perform various inquiries, filtering, searches, and it can be used in any external system, such as banks, insurance companies and others,” Drašković says, emphasizing that the central base and central system are a prerequisite for the implementation of other revolutionary technologies, such as Blockchain technology. “With the new cadaster system, a new era of digital business in Serbia is opened,” concludes the director of the RGA.