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20.05.2006 Regional News

Customary Land Secretariat inaugurated in Sandema

20.05.2006 LISTEN
By GNA

Mr Andrew Adjei-Yeboah, Deputy Minister of Lands, Forestry and Mines has inaugurated a Customary Land Secretariat (CLS) at Sandema in the Builsa District of the Upper East Region.

He said their establishment were part of the government's efforts to address the myriad problems confronting the land sector, including poor record-keeping, boundaries, multiple sale of lands, protracted land litigation that had clouded the courts.

Mr Adjei-Yeboah noted that challenges facing the land sector in Ghana had scared many foreign investors from the country, and to address these challenges and other related problems the Government initiated the CLS project.

He said the establishment and strengthening of CLS formed part of the Land Administration Project (LAP) being undertaken by the Government, to re-engineering land administration to create a fair, efficient and transparent land tenure system in the country. Mr Adjei-Yeboah said the Government acknowledged traditional authorities as custodians of lands therefore, the CLS would directly involve them in their activities to ensure that land ownership rights for the citizenry as well as other users would be clarified and recorded to avoid land litigation.

"Records on land transaction would also be kept at all local levels and conflict resolution mechanisms regarding land litigation would be put in place to address such situations, " He added. Mr Thomas Kofi Alonsi, Builsa District Chief Executive expressed appreciation for the establishment of the CLS pilot project in the district.

He said it would prevent people in the area from travelling to Bolgatanga and other urban centres to resolve land issues.

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