Mr Seth Kwame Acheampong, the Eastern Regional Minister, on Wednesday said the passage of Ghana’s new Land Law 2020 (Act 1036) shows Government’s commitment to stabilize land administration and boost local and international investment.
It also seeks to ameliorate land sector problems such as the destruction of the environment through illegal mining or “galamsey” and wanton chain saw operations with its negative effect on water bodies.
The law also shows government’s resolve to deal with conflict between customary landowners and lessees of public land areas; conflicting land search reports and double registrations of land; encroachment on public lands and issues around rapid development of properties without regard to planning schemes.
Mr Acheampong said the Government has initiated several interventions and was keen on removing the numerous bottlenecks confronting Ghana’s land sector to help boost local and international investments.
The Minister who was speaking during the inauguration of the reconstituted 39-member of the Eastern Regional Lands Commission raised concerns about the challenges facing Ghana’s land administration.
Ghana’s new land Act aims to revise, harmonise and consolidate laws on land to ensure sustainable land administration and management as well as ensure effective and efficient land tenure.
The Act repeals 13 enactments and re-enacts same with modifications, according to land experts, who also say the law further contains a number of novel provisions.
“It is the desire of the Government to support the Lands Commission to deal with these bottlenecks to make land transactions easy,” Mr Acheampong said.
He added that government was investing in turning the Lands Commission into a true digital organization to speed up land services and enhance the accuracy of land certificates and records. “This will also ensure a high standard of land data security.”
“The Government will free up surplus and underutilized lands, held by public departments for housing and commercial development to boost economic development and reduce the housing deficit,” he said.
He expressed optimism that the reconstituted commission would be the vehicle to drive policies of government in fulfillment of the manifesto pledge by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.
He was hopeful the new commission would live up to the task and tackle several challenges confronting land sector management in Eastern Region, and pledged government support for the Commission to deliver on their mandate.
The Eastern Region has been identified as having great significance in the national setting and represent eight per cent of the total land area of Ghana, with unique investment potentials in education, agriculture, tourism, mining and real estate development.
Mr Benito Owusu-Bio, Deputy Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, who inaugurated the team said, the role of land in Ghana’s economy was of great significance and that without sound tenure security and appropriate land management principles, “there can be no sustainable development”.
This is because there would be little or no willingness by both local and foreign investors to make long term investments.
Mr Owusu-Bio charged the Commissioners to be fully guided by the Lands Commission Act, 2008 (Act 767) and the Land Act, 2020 (Act 1036) by ensuring “there is equity in the functional responsibilities and privileges of all the divisions of the Commission”.
He enumerated several peculiar challenges of land administration in Eastern Region including the destruction of the environment through illegal mining or “galamsey” and chain saw operations with its attendant negative effect on water bodies.
Others were conflict between customary landowners and lessees of public land areas, as well as conflicting search reports and double registrations, with its attendant rapid development of properties without regard to planning schemes and encroachment on public lands.
“I must say that in dealing with these issues, diplomacy and firmness ought to be the key qualities that must be exhibited by this new Lands Commission,” Mr Owusu-Bio said during the inauguration on Tuesday.
While believing the mix in professional backgrounds of the members could help tackle the problems head-on, he also charged them to collaborate with relevant stakeholders to further push the fight against activities like “Galamsey” and chain saw operations.
The Deputy Minister who is also the Member of Parliament for Atwima-Nwabiagya in Ashanti Region expressed concern about illegal activities destroying the environment and many major river bodies and forest reserves and urged the ERLC members to take stern action against encroachment on public lands to ensure uninterrupted execution of public projects.
“My Ministry will support every effort aimed at eradicating these challenges,” he said, stressing: “The Commission must be the eye of government in this regard and the Ministry will provide the needed backing.”
He also said one of the major tasks of the ERLC would be to comply with the provisions of section 270 of Act 1036, which deals with the de-vesting of vested lands.
“I am reliably informed that Koforidua and Nkawkaw townships are all vested, it will be your duty to liaise with the secretariat and other relevant agencies to ensure that this mandate that Act 1036 has placed on the Regional Lands Commission is dealt with,” he added.
“It is also important for the Commission to devise an effective communication strategy to educate the public on the new Lands Act 2020 (Act 1036).”
GNA