Ghana related Blog post | Land Portal
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Ghana's Supreme Court rules on 40-year Land Dispute
14 December 2023
Authors: 
Mr. James Twumasi Appiah
Western Africa
Ghana

Cet article met l'accent sur l'importance cruciale de la sécurité du régime foncier pour les investissements locaux et étrangers, en particulier dans la région de l'Afrique subsaharienne, avec le Ghana comme étude de cas. Il souligne l'impact positif de la sécurité du régime foncier sur l'utilisation du crédit, la valeur des terres en garantie, l'efficacité du transfert des terres, la réduction des litiges et l'augmentation de la productivité. Malgré les nombreux défis auxquels est confronté le secteur foncier ghanéen, les récents arrêts de la Cour suprême concernant un litige foncier générationnel impliquant la famille Numo Nmashie ont des implications considérables pour la sécurité du régime foncier et l'investissement dans le pays. La saga juridique remonte à 1966, lorsque le gouvernement a acquis une importante parcelle de terre, ce qui a conduit à une décision contestée de la Cour d'appel en 1982. Le récent arrêt de la Cour suprême a annulé cette décision, mettant en évidence des informations frauduleuses et ordonnant à la Commission foncière de rectifier les enregistrements. Les conséquences de cet arrêt sont multiples et comprennent l'insécurité foncière, les transitions locatives, les obligations légales, la possibilité d'expulsions ou de négociations, les obligations financières, la prudence en matière d'investissement, l'impact économique, les défis juridiques, les litiges, l'impact communautaire et social, et la nécessité potentielle d'une intervention et d'une réglementation du gouvernement. En mettant l'accent sur les vastes implications pour les locataires existants, les résidents, les entreprises et le paysage socio-économique au sens large, l'article souligne la nécessité d'examiner attentivement les aspects juridiques et économiques pour faire face aux conséquences de l'arrêt de la Cour suprême.

Ghana's Supreme Court rules on 40-year Land Dispute
14 December 2023
Authors: 
Mr. James Twumasi Appiah
Western Africa
Ghana

This article focuses on the critical importance of secure land tenure for both local and foreign investment, particularly in the Sub-Saharan African region, with Ghana as a case study. It emphasizes the positive impact of land tenure security on credit use, collateral value, efficient land transfer, reduced disputes, and increased productivity. Despite various challenges in Ghana's land sector, recent Supreme Court rulings on a generational land dispute involving the Numo Nmashie Family have far-reaching implications for land tenure security and investment in the country. The legal saga dates back to 1966 when the government acquired a significant land parcel, leading to a disputed Court of Appeal decision in 1982. The recent Supreme Court ruling overturned this decision, highlighting fraudulent information and directing the Lands Commission to rectify registrations. The consequences of this ruling are multifaceted and include tenure insecurity, tenancy transitions, legal obligations, the possibility of evictions or negotiations, financial obligations, investment caution, economic impact, legal challenges, disputes, community and social impact, and the potential need for government intervention and regulation. With emphasis on wide-ranging implications for existing tenants, residents, businesses, and the broader socio-economic landscape, the article underscores the need for careful consideration of legal and economic aspects in navigating the aftermath of the Supreme Court ruling.

Malawi Small Scale Livestock and Livelihoods Program
17 November 2023
Authors: 
Mr. Neil Sorensen
Africa
Kenya
Southern Africa
South Africa
Ghana
Liberia
Sierra Leone

En un seminario web que invitó a la reflexión, moderado por Nolundi Luwaya, director del Centro de Investigación sobre Tierras y Responsabilidad de la Universidad de Ciudad del Cabo, expertos de toda África se reunieron para desentrañar las complejidades del papel de las autoridades tradicionales en la gobernanza de las inversiones basadas en la tierra. Este evento sacó a la luz los desafíos y estrategias únicos empleados por las autoridades tradicionales en la gestión de inversiones basadas en tierras.

Malawi Small Scale Livestock and Livelihoods Program
17 November 2023
Authors: 
Mr. Neil Sorensen
Africa
Kenya
Southern Africa
South Africa
Ghana
Liberia
Sierra Leone

Em um webinário instigante moderado por Nolundi Luwaya, Diretor do Centro de Pesquisa sobre Terras e Responsabilidade da Universidade da Cidade do Cabo, especialistas de toda a África se reuniram para desvendar as complexidades do papel das autoridades tradicionais na governança de investimentos baseados em terras. Esse evento trouxe à tona os desafios e as estratégias exclusivas empregadas pelas autoridades tradicionais no gerenciamento de investimentos em terras.

Malawi Small Scale Livestock and Livelihoods Program
17 November 2023
Authors: 
Mr. Neil Sorensen
Africa
Kenya
Southern Africa
South Africa
Ghana
Liberia
Sierra Leone

Dans le cadre d'un webinaire stimulant animé par Nolundi Luwaya, directeur du Centre de recherche sur la terre et la responsabilité de l'Université du Cap, des experts de toute l'Afrique se sont réunis pour démêler les complexités du rôle des autorités traditionnelles dans la gouvernance des investissements fonciers. Cet événement a mis en lumière les défis uniques et les stratégies employées par les autorités traditionnelles dans la gestion des investissements fonciers.

Malawi Small Scale Livestock and Livelihoods Program
17 November 2023
Authors: 
Mr. Neil Sorensen
Africa
Kenya
Southern Africa
South Africa
Ghana
Liberia
Sierra Leone

In a thought-provoking webinar moderated by Nolundi Luwaya, Director of the Land and Accountability Research Centre at the University of Cape Town, experts from across Africa convened to unravel the complexities of the role of traditional authorities in land-based investment governance. This event brought to light the unique challenges and strategies employed by traditional authorities in managing land-based investments.

Discussing Land Use Rights
24 August 2022
Authors: 
Wytske Chamberlain - van der Werf
Maaike van den Berg
Monica Lengoiboni
Burundi
Ghana
Global

Le programme LAND-at-scale vise à appliquer des approches transformatrices de genre à la gouvernance foncière dans ses projets.

Discussing Land Use Rights
24 August 2022
Authors: 
Wytske Chamberlain - van der Werf
Maaike van den Berg
Monica Lengoiboni
Burundi
Ghana
Global

This blog describes the common trends and actions across the projects, and is enriched with additional insights from the LANDac Annual Conference 2022 and other events.

Urban Green Spaces
5 July 2021
Authors: 
Shaswati Chowdhury
Ghana
Global

Urban Green Spaces (UGS) are vegetated open spaces that provide a multitude of ecological functions that are essential for the physical and mental well-being of the citizens as well as for the urban environment. However, land is an extremely competitive resource in cities that are struggling to sustain the ever-growing urban population and UGS are constantly under threat of urban encroachment. Even the well spread out cities are pressured to densify by the more commonplace ‘sustainable dense urban neighbourhood’ approach that in turn, increases the pressure on open spaces such as UGS.

22 June 2021
Authors: 
Dr. Anne Hennings
Uganda
Zimbabwe
Ghana
Nigeria

Securing women’s land rights remains high in the news and in the development agenda in recent months. A quick search on Land Portal shows since March this year more than 250 resources related to land & gender, including news articles, blogs and publications.

Fonte: https://www.project-syndicate.org/
30 March 2021
Authors: 
Mr. Tim Hanstad
Mauritius
Zimbabwe
Ghana
Malaysia
Bangladesh
India
Sri Lanka
Estonia
Global

No mês passado, um ex-ministro do governo do Zimbábue foi preso por venda ilegal de terrenos públicos. Alguns dias depois, um tribunal da Malásia condenou por corrupção o ex-presidente de uma agência de desenvolvimento agrário de terras públicas. E, em janeiro, o governo da Estônia desmoronou em meio a alegações de corrupção em negociações de propriedades. Todos estes eventos recentes puseram em foco a ameaça crescente, porém negligenciada, da corrupção ligada a terras.

A meeting between IED Afrique, the Mbadakhoune municipal team and local representatives (Photo: copyright Ibrahima Dia/IED Afrique)
8 March 2021
Authors: 
Philippine Sutz
Africa
Tanzania
Ghana
Senegal

Across East and West Africa, IIED and partners have been developing and testing approaches to strengthen women’s voices in local land governance. Philippine Sutz reflects on the role and impact of local governance frameworks as these approaches are implemented in different contexts.


Since 2016, IIED has been working with local partners across East and West Africa to strengthen rural women’s voices in local land governance.


The assumption underpinning this work is that when local women actively participate in land governance, related structures are more likely to recognise and defend women’s interests. This leads to fairer land relations and women having greater control over their livelihood options.


 


In each country where the project has been implemented – Tanzania, Ghana and Senegal – local partners have developed, strengthened or scaled up approaches to support local women to enter the political space and participate meaningfully in local decision-making processes on land allocation and use.


While tailored to address local contexts and needs, the approaches developed in each country share similarities: None of them ‘reinvent the wheel’ but build on existing governance arrangements; they are bottom-up and participatory, involving community dialogue and capacity building exercises; and they all seek to ensure that decision-making bodies on land include a minimum number of active women members and promote local dialogue.


But the approach design was different to recognise the opportunities and gaps associated with each country’s land governance framework.


Tanzania and Ghana: local level governance fosters local ownership


In Tanzania, the law establishes local authorities with power to administer land at the lowest administrative level: the village. The village council and village assembly play a key role in local land governance – they have the power to allocate land and make decisions on land use.


In Ghana, land is governed customarily by traditional authorities, and land governance rules vary from one area to another. In the area where our project was implemented – the Nanton Traditional Area – community chiefs are given power to administer land.


In both countries, the local governance systems enabled our partners to embed their approaches directly at the community level and ensure local ownership.


In Tanzania, the Tanzania Women Lawyers Association (TAWLA) worked directly with village authorities to support the adoption of gender-sensitive village by-laws promoting the participation of women in village level decision-making processes. The process received good support from local communities.


In Ghana, NETRIGHT and the Grassroot Sisterhood Foundation (GSF) worked with local community chiefs – the lowest traditional administrative unit – to establish Community Land Development Committees (CLDCs). These committees are designed to support chiefs in making decisions on land and ensure that such committees had women members.


Senegal: challenges at municipal level


In Senegal, meanwhile, public land is managed by the local governments of municipalities – and community land is allocated at the local level through the municipality. A ‘municipality’ includes between around 30 and 60 villages; this is a higher ‘administrative level’ compared with land governance in Tanzania or Ghana.


The authorities administering land are the municipal council through the land commission – a local body supporting the council’s decision-making process.


Our partner IED Afrique worked in Darou Khoudoss to support the inclusion of women in the land commission and the adoption of a local land charter promoting women’s participation in land governance.


Working at the municipal level – rather than directly in villages – has proved more challenging in terms of local ownership. IED Afrique developed additional activities to ensure buy-in at village level. In particular, they collaborated with local women’ groups to make sure that the project was reaching women in villages.


In Tanzania and Senegal, land being governed by national laws makes it easier to replicate and scale up approaches. In Tanzania, TAWLA was able to reach all 64 villages in the Kisarawe District. Replicating the approach across different regions in Ghana would have meant adapting it to each regional context, which would have been cumbersome and resource intensive.


Takeaways for policymakers


Comparing land governance frameworks (PDF) in the three countries shows how their nature – and in particular the existence (or lack) of heavily decentralised power on land – determines, to a degree, the administrative level where the intervention takes place. This impacts how easily participatory and inclusive bottom-up approaches can be implemented.


Local authorities having power over land at the village or community level – as in Tanzania and Ghana – is a real advantage, as it allows approaches to be embedded in the very communities they’re trying to support. When land is governed at a higher administrative level – as in Senegal – additional efforts and resources are often needed to ensure local ownership of the approach.


In wider terms, my sense is that the more decentralised a land governance framework, the better for democratic, participatory processes to take place and ultimately, for how local women’s voices can be reflected in decisions made on land administration. This should be kept in mind by governments undertaking land governance reforms.



This blog was originally posted  on the IIED website and is the fourth blog in a series looking at ways to strengthen women’s access to and control over land in Africa.

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