MOVES BY TO MINIMISE LAND DISPUTES (PAGE 32)

Sstory: Kwame Asiedu Marfo, Takoradi

The Land Administration Project (LAP) is to establish 30 pilot Customary Land secretariats in the country by the end of June this year to promote the peaceful development of local communities and minimise land-related disputes and conflicts.
The secretariats will also provide accurate land records at the local level that can be accessed by the communities, as well as clarify ownership and land use rights.
Already, 10 of the secretariats have been established. They are the Okyenhene Secretariat at Kyebi in the Eastern Region; the Wassa Amenfi Secretariat at Wassa Akropong in the Western Region; the Gbawe-Kwatey Family Secretariat in the Greater Accra Region; the Asantehene’s Secretariat in the Ashanti Region and the Tabiase Secretariat in the Upper West Region.
The rest are the Sandema Builsa Secretariat in the Upper East Region; the Kete–Krachi Secretariat in the Volta Region; the Gulkpegu Secretariat in the Northern Region and the Odupong-Kpehe Secretariat in the Central Region.
Ten more of the secretariats are to be inaugurated by the end of June this year at Ejisu, Juaben, Nkawie, Toase, Bekwai, Agogo and Asante Mampong, all in the Ashanti Region, Wa in the Upper West Region, Bole in the Northern Region and Beyin in the Western Region.
The remaining 10 will be opened later this year.
The National Facilitator of the Customary Land Administration, Mr Mark Kakraba-Ampeh, announced this in Takoradi at a day’s sensitisation workshop on the establishment of Customary Land secretariats for chiefs and landowners in the Western Region.
He explained that the Asantehene’s Land Secretariat, the Okyenhene Secretariat and the Gbawe-Kwatey Family Secretariat had been established long ago but the project had strengthened them by providing them with equipment and sensitising the chiefs and people in those areas.
Mr Kakraba-Ampeh stressed that the establishment of the Customary Land secretariats did not change any custom or tradition of the traditional areas where they were established.
“It does not change the relationship between sub-chiefs and their overlords,” he stated, adding, “The customs and traditions remain the same.”
He added that the secretariats were only to keep records on customary lands at the local level, saying, “It is an intervention to assist Nananom on the effective administration of stool lands.”
Mr Kakraba-Ampeh said it was expected that the secretariats would improve the quality of records and accessibility of information at the local level on land use and holdings, land transactions and availability.
He said the Customary Land Administration had started the demarcation of the traditional boundaries of seven traditional areas on a pilot basis.
He said it was also taking inventory of all government acquired and occupied lands and had almost completed the exercise in the Central Region.
The Western Regional Stool Lands Officer and Regional LAP Co-ordinator, Mr Patrick Amoah, explained that the project was implemented to rectify various problems and anomalies in land administration in the country.
He said the sustainability of the secretariats would highly depend on the chiefs.
The President of the Western Regional House of Chiefs, Awulae Atiburukusu III, urged the chiefs to embrace the establishment of the secretariats, since it would help them in the effective administration of their lands.
The Paramount Chief of the Western Nzema Traditional Area, Awulae Annor Adjaye, suggested that the metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies should be compelled to support the establishment of the secretariats.
He also said paramount chiefs should have authority or control over the secretariats so that the authority of the chiefs would not be usurped.