Volta Region needs more customary land secretariats

Ho, Aug 07, GNA- Mr Kofi Dzamesi, Volta Regional Minister on Tuesday appealed to the authorities of the Land Administration Project (LAP) to provide more customary land secretariats for the Region, to take care of the many land disputes.

In a speech read for him at a forum organized by the Land Administration Project in Ho, the Minister observed that land disputes and conflicts were one of the Region's impediments to its socio-economic development.

The forum attracted stakeholders in land administration and traditional leaders to collate views on the contents of the Land Act. Mr Kofi Dzamesi noted that there had been instances where government projects had stalled in the Region due to land disputes and recalled how some investors had to abandon certain projects in the area due to the disputes.

Mr Dzamesi observed that the general land problem in the country was due to the country's Land Policy development framework, which he said had not been comprehensively formulated.

He stated that past policies had been comprehensive, making intractable land disputes between individuals, groups and within communities a major concern for the country.

The Minister said though a land policy had been prepared recently, its implementation could be problematic because of the weaknesses inherent in the institutions to initiate and coordinate policy actions among themselves and traditional authorities. and called for a second look at it.

Mr Odame Larbi, LAP Director said the project had reached an implementation stage where a new Land Act would be drafted for the country.

He said it would involve a review of the existing legislation to fill gaps that would be identified.

Mr Larbi said the forum would deal with more substantive land issues some of which might touch on tenure relations and its security. He said some of the issues were difficult, "but we need to address all as a country", and appealed to all stakeholders to make useful inputs for the success of the project.