Page 1 of 11 Valuation of Inalienable Customary Lands Fair Compensation to Indigenous Land Owners Presented to the 1 st World Congress of the International Real E state Society Girdwood, Alaska, 25 – 28 July 2001 By Matthew S. Myers, MAI, FIVEM Department of Land Management and Development School of Social and E conomic Development University of the South Pacific PO Box 1168 Suva, Fiji Islands 679 / 212.469 myers_m@ usp.ac.fj I NTRODUCTION Throughout history of the last millennium, imperialistic forces have sailed the world seeking new lands to conquer. Most often, these lands were arrogated by force or deceit and then colonised by new residents from the motherland. The colonisers established new land tenure systems that were often in conflict with the existing customary land tenure system of the indigenous population. In the 19 th century, some imperialistic countries started to recognise indigenous rights, although some were very limited, to customary lands. Today, customary lands are spread from the frigid north of Alaska and Canada to the tropical waters of the Pacific to the plains of Africa. Most customary lands are inalienable, and thus cannot be sold. However, as these countries continue to develop, it is essential for society to acquire portions of these customary lands for roads and other infrastructure. Traditional market value definitions are predicated on transferability of ownership and an open market of knowledgeable willing sellers and buyers, which neither exists for customary lands. Thus, how do appraisers determine fair compensation for land that does not exist in a market? This paper explores methodologies used for valuing customary land within Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Pacific Island Countries. V ALUATION OF I NDIGENOUS L ANDS Within the context of valuing Indian reserve lands in Canada, Lowry states it ‘is a special field of real property appraisal that frustrates many of those who accept such assignments. They find that the mechanics of the appraisal process do not seem to work and that the answers given by a logical and thorough study often seem