Customary Land Secretariats In Ghana - Building On Tradition And Modernity

INTRODUCTION AND RATIONALE: In order facilitate rational and orderly system of land administration at the customary level, the Ghana Government with support from developing partners have been establishing Customary Land Secretariats (CLSs) based on substantial innovation and on strong, fruitful collaborative relationship between the different actors. The work seeks to provide an understanding of the operations of the CLSs in Ghana by demonstrating the outcome of establishing CLS over the period 2006 to 2016.THE SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES ARE TO ASSESS THE EFFECTIVENESS OF CUSTOMARY LAND SECRETARIATS IN TERMS OF: streamlining Customary Land Administration, maintaining reliable and up-to-date record of land transactions, and settling disputes through Alternative Dispute Resolution mechanisms.IMPORTANCE OF THE STUDY: The study is important because in Ghana just as in many African economies land is central to livelihood as such an efficient land administration system at the local level has the potential to improve upon the quality of life for many. DATA ANDMETHODOLOGY: The research hinges on robust empirical evidence with analysis of primary quantitative and qualitative data collated from CLSs randomly selected across the country. To ensure the quality of information and data used steps were taken to cross check information from different sources.FINDINGS: Results show that in Traditional Areas where CLSs have been established, there are now credible data on customary lands. The study also found a reduction in the number of ownership disputes in CLS areas and found that CLSs are making giant strides in public education and sensitization of community people on land issues. RECOMMENDATION: The work recommendations a process of monitoring of CLSs located within Civil Society to expose and defend the way land rights are abused by traditional authorities.CONCLUSION: The work has points to the fact that the Ghanaian example provides useful lessons for other developing countries to improve upon the participatory approaches to land management at the grass roots.