In the Akan family system, inheritors of property are fiduciary, not bona fide owners - Nana Kɔbena Footwe

In a bid to educate Ghanaians on their heritage during Ghana Month, Mr. Peter Alexander Hope, also known as Nana Kɔbena Footwe, a Lecturer (retired) in the Department of Ghanaian Languages and Linguistics at the University of Cape Coast, has offered some compelling insights into the inheritance system of the Akans in Ghana.

During a one-on-one interview with DC Kwame Kwakye on GBC Radio Central Morning Show, Monday, March 17, 2025, Mr. Hope postulated that the Akan inheritance system is one of the best, arguing it is a well-carved system that caters to the needs of the dead and the living. He noted that the person who inherits another person's property is the prerogative of the family. "The family members of the deceased decide who takes over from the dead, and no one else – not even the deceased person while alive – can dictate who takes over when he or she expires", stressed Nana Footwe.

The person appointed by the family to inherit the property of a deceased person does so on a functional level. The inheritor is expected to supervise and manage the property, ensuring that the proceeds from the property are used to cater for the deceased person's surviving spouse, children, and family, as the case may be.

Clarifying the differences between an inheritor and a beneficiary of a deceased person's will, Mr. Hope highlighted that the beneficiaries of the will cannot be changed. However, there is a difference between an inheritor and will beneficiaries: the inheritor is a family appointee, while the will beneficiaries are at the discretion of the property owner. Nonetheless, the inheritor performs all other social functions that the deceased was performing before death, in order to avoid leaving a void after his or her demise.

It was Nana Footwe's considered view that the Akan governance system was well-structured and catered to the needs of its people very well. Going forward, he argued that it is greed, selfishness, and corruption that have eroded our cultural governance structures. "It's not the culture, which is bad, but rather the greed and selfishness of some current leaders that have corrupted our system, not the culture itself", he affirmed.

When asked about how to ensure the continuity of such lofty inheritance structures, he underscored that the older generation must pass on this knowledge to the current generation, which can guarantee continuity and amplify the essence of maintaining our cultural ethos.

The abuse, greed, and extreme selfishness of some inheritors, coupled with weak family heads, have aggravated the bad perception surrounding our inheritance structures. The Interstate Succession Law was passed to cure the mischief surrounding people who die intestate and to curtail greedy inheritors from taking over the property of the deceased at the expense of the deceased's kids and surviving spouse.

"If the Akan inheritance is properly implemented, there would be no need for laws governing inheritance. It curtails greed, selfishness, and ensures sane continuity of the deceased's life," he stated.