If you read upthread, the example given was that of Asian farmers who struggle with markers being damaged by floods.
A cheap device that was able to locate reference points with GPS to some sort of online land registry would potentially avoid these disputes. Blockchain could be a tool to mitigate the limited connectivity available.
It’s potentially a way to make information more available and maybe facilitate certain transactions.
Again, it’s just a technology. It may make sense as a solution or not.
> A cheap device that was able to locate reference points with GPS to some sort of online land registry would potentially avoid these disputes.
Okay, and why would you use a blockchain over a state-held database?
Because it doesn't matter what your blockchain says about ownership, the state that issued the title deeds are the ones who decide where the boundaries are.
If the state is not recording it, recording it in a blockchain doesn't help.
So what happens when a rich baron approaches a farmer who's exact GPS ownership record is registered on the blockchain and says "transfer digital ownership of your land to me, or i kill your sister"?
Exactly the same thing as what happens without a blockchain.
Weak institutions are absolutely a problem in human society, but they are not solved by decentralization technology.
Even better for the land owner, they (or more likely a "subcontractor") can force the transfer once and even if courts get involved and decide in favor of the farmer, the records can't be corrected if they are based on blockchain technology.
A less violent example would be a fraud based on social engineering.
It sounds like you’re throwing hands up and stating that no change is possible.
Land records are by definition ledgers. A distributed ledger is also a ledger. Does it protect you from a physical harm? Of course not.
Weak institutions are a problem, but technolgy can be used to strengthen them. If you can make facts more available and easier to access, perhaps you can push disputes to local magistrates and improve access to justice.
A cheap device that was able to locate reference points with GPS to some sort of online land registry would potentially avoid these disputes. Blockchain could be a tool to mitigate the limited connectivity available.
It’s potentially a way to make information more available and maybe facilitate certain transactions.
Again, it’s just a technology. It may make sense as a solution or not.