1. INTRODUCTION
The Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources is the
sector Ministry entrusted with the management of Ghana's land, forest,
wildlife and mineral resources.
2. VISION AND MISSION
To ensure the sustainable management and utilisation
of Ghana 's lands, forests, wildlife and mineral resources for
socio-economic growth and development. This is achieved through:
- efficient formulation, implementation, coordination, monitoring and evaluation of policies and programmes of sector agencies;
- efficient and equitable land delivery;
- promotion of sustainable forest, wildlife and mineral resource management and utilization;
- promotion of effective inter-agency and cross-sectoral linkages;
- creation of an enabling environment for effective private sector participation; and
- promotion of effective community participation in multiple use of land, forest wildlife and mineral resources.
3. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
The Ministry's activities and implementation of the current reforms are in pursuance of its set aims and objectives. These are:
- Develop and manage sustainable lands, forest, wildlife and mineral resources;
- To facilitate equitable access, benefit sharing from and security to land, forest and mineral resources;
- Promote public awareness and local communities participation in
sustainable forest, wildlife and land use management and utilization;
- To review, update, harmonise and consolidate existing legislation and policies affecting land, forest and mineral resources;
- To promote and facilitate effective private sector participation in
land service delivery, forest, wildlife and mineral resource management
and utilization;
- Develop and maintain effective institutional capacity and
capability at the national, regional, district and community levels for
land, forest, wildlife and mineral service delivery;
- Develop and research into problems of forest, wildlife, mineral resources and land use;
4. FUNCTIONS
The Ministry is responsible for:
- Monitoring and Evaluation;
- Validation of Policies, Programmes and Projects;
- Supervision of Sector Departments and Agencies; and
- Negotiations with Development Partners.
5. ACHIEVEMENTS
5.1 LANDS SUB-SECTOR
LAND ADMINISTRATION PROJECT (LAP)
To address the problems in the sub-sector, the
Ministry is implementing a Land Administration Project (LAP). This
Project involves all the Land Sector Agencies and the Town and Country
Planning Department which however is not under the Ministry.
The first phase commenced in October 2003 and will
run until 2008, with the focus on developing a sustainable and well
functioning land administration system that is fair, transparent,
cost-effective, efficient, client-centred and de-centralised. Expected
outputs of this phase include the following:
- A harmonised and streamlined policy and legislative framework; including land-use planning.
- An efficient and cost effective One-Stop-Service centre for land administration services
- Improved security of tenure through systematic land titling,
establishment of customary land secretariats and customary boundary
demarcations
- A re-engineered, self-financing institutional structure.
STATUS OF IMPLEMENTATION
The following activities have been undertaken:
- Proposals have been prepared, through participatory processes, for
the consolidation of all the land laws into one comprehensive law and
the merger of the six public land sector agencies into one institution.
- Inventory of thirty one (31) state acquired sites in Accra and
eight hundred and eighty-four (884) sites in the Central Region with
the objective of preparing appropriate policy responses to address
outstanding issues on compulsory acquisition and compensation.
- The establishment of three Customary Lands Secretariats (Gbawe,
Greater Accra Region; Wassa-Amenfi, Western Region and Tabiase, Upper
West Region) and the strengthening of two existing secretariats (The
Asantehene's Lands Secretariat, Ashanti Region; and the Okyehene's
Lands Secretariat, Kyebi, Eastern Region) to improve customary land
administration.
- Four Deed Registries have been established in Sekondi, Sunyani
Koforidua and Tamale in addition to the two registries existing in
Kumasi and Accra . This is the beginning of the process of
decentralising the registration of land transactions and the
preparation of the grounds for eventual title registration.
- The process of systematic land titling on pilot basis has commenced
in two sections of District 03 in Accra (Cantonments, Ringway Estates
and Labone) and in Kumasi . It is estimated that about 2,700 parcels
will be issued with title certificates. The benefits to be derived
include improved security of tenure, cheap, fast and safe handling of
land transactions.
- Customary boundary demarcation has commenced in Wasa Amenfi in the
Western Region and Ejisu in the Ashanti Region. Stakeholder
sensitisation and consultations have been held with Paramountcies that
share boundaries with these traditional areas to inform, educate and
seek their cooperation for take off of the fieldwork. The exercise will
improve on security of tenure and certainty of land rights/holding and
also serve as an incentive for attracting investment.
- Extensive collaboration and participatory meetings have been held
across the country with the Judiciary and the various Houses of Chiefs
(Regional and National), key stakeholders and civil society on the
reform processes to create awareness, provide a platform for
participation and to solicit views.
- The project has also undertaken a scoping study on gender and land
and the key recommendation is that the land sector should have a gender
strategy, which is being worked on.
Under their specific mandates the various land
sector departments and agencies have also undertaken some important
activities. Some of these include:
- Mapping of 512 kilometres of coast line of Ghana for tourism
development, development of salt industry, checking of coastal erosion
and the extension of Ghana 's continental shelf beyond the 200 nautical
miles exclusive economic zone to facilitate oil exploration.
- Preparation of large scale maps for planning and developmental
purposes and rating valuation. Some of the towns covered include
Savelugu, Mampong, Yendi, Nkoranza, Nsawam, Aflao, Obuasi and Madina.
- Valuation and revaluation of properties of Metro/Municipal/District
Assemblies to improve their revenue generation base. Some of these
assemblies are Mpohor Wassa East, North Tongu , New Juaben and Kumasi
Metropolitan Assemblies.
- Redevelopment of selected Government Residential areas in
Cantonments, Ridge, Roman Ridge and Switchback Road areas in Accra to
increase the density of development to take advantage of the existing
infrastructure. This is being undertaken jointly by the Lands
Commission and the Ministry of Works and Housing.
FORESTRY SUB-SECTOR
1. In order to restore the forest cover of the
nation and to create employment for the rural and depressed urban
communities, the Ministry is implementing six forest plantation
projects.
These are:
- The Modified Taungya System (implemented by the FC);
- Government Forestry Plantation Development Project, funded under the HIPC initiative;
- Community Forestry Management Project, funded by African Development Bank;
- Participatory Forest Management Project in the Transitional Zone of Ghana, funded by JICA;
- FORUM Project, funded by GTZ;
- Private Sector Plantation Development, partly supported by the Forest Plantation Development Fund established by the Ministry.
To date, the total area planted under the various
approaches is approximately 81,000 ha and has provided employment for
46,058 people on full time base and 1,049,833 on part-time.
In addition, the programme has made significant achievement in the area of:
- Food production in the various project areas, thus providing food security for the nation
- Securing water catchments areas, e.g Tano, Birim and Densu.
2. The Ministry is actively promoting the use of
Bamboo and Rattan as an alternative and supplement to the wood deficit
in the country.
In furtherance of this objective, the Ministry has
trained 172 persons in management of bamboo natural stands harvesting
and propagation in 4 communities. In addition, 159 persons have been
trained in bamboo and rattan furniture, craft and construction skills
and plans are in place to train more of such people to enhance the
development of this project.
As part of the sensitisation programme under the
project, an exhibition was mounted for the mining sector on the use of
bamboo for land reclamation after mining operations have ceased.
Another exhibition was held for District Chief Executives to sensitise
them on the use of the bamboo as an alternative to timber for the
construction of schools and manufacture of furniture.
3. In order to sustain community participation in
the management of the resource, the Ministry has revised the benefit
sharing arrangement of forest revenue from off reserves. The current
sharing ratio is 60% for resource owners and 40% for the Forest
Commission (resource manager) as against the reverse in the previous
arrangement.
In addition, the Ministry has set up a Committee to
review the benefit sharing arrangement of 40:60 of royalties accruing
from forest reserves, that is, 40% to traditional authorities and 60%
to Government.
4. The Ministry is encouraging the development of
eco-tourism through public-private partnerships. The Mole, the Kakum
and the Ankassa Resource areas have been advertised for interested
entities to apply for operational licences. Similarly, a private
company has won a bid for Shai-Hills Resource Centre tourist facility.
Negotiations are ongoing to finalise the operational Agreement.
5. The Ministry is also implementing a ten-year
Wildfire Management Project, to reduce the negative impact of bush fire
on natural resource management and development. Even though the project
implementation is on-going preliminary assessment by the Environmental
Protection Agency indicates that wildfire menace is being reduced
particularly in the pilot areas of the project. As part of the project
component the Ministry together with other stakeholders have developed
a National Wildfire Management Policy to provide an institutional
framework and strategies to guide Wildfire prevention and control in
Ghana . The policy document will be made available to the public
hopefully before the end of this year.
6. Various alternative livelihood schemes to wean
fringe communities off forest resources have been instituted by the
Ministry. . An example is the disbursement of 2.5 million dollar
Community Investment Fund (CIF) to over 5,255 beneficiaries under a
grant arrangement with the Global Environmental Facility. Loans granted
with low interest rates have stimulated economic activities in the
areas of bee-keeping, grasscutter rearing, piggery, oil palm
processing, soap making, cold stores businesses, sewing and bakery.
MINING SUB-SECTOR
The Ministry, through its mining sub-sector
Agencies, has initiated policy reforms and undertaken various strategic
programmes and projects within the past twelve months. The following
programmes and activities were undertaken.
Local Economic Development (LED) Or Alternative Livelihood Projects (ALP) In Mining Communities
Since minerals are depletable resources there is the
need to have an alternative source of livelihood. The Ministry held
consultations with the Chiefs and people of Himan, Nsuta-Mbeasi,
Huni-Valley and Awodua in the Western Region to undertake an oil palm
project for the benefit of these communities. The consultations ended
with the chiefs agreeing to release land for the start of the project
next year.
The Ministry has also been working with the National
Board for Small Scale Industries (NBSSI), to develop non-mining skills
such as fish farming, snail rearing, livestock and poultry farming,
soap making, batik tye & dye, etc., in mining communities in
Bontefufou, Tetrem, Esaase, Dumasi.
Reclamation of Mined Out Areas
The Ministry is undertaking studies in the Yakaso
(35.7 ha) and Tontokrom (115 ha) in the Ashanti Region and at
Adjakaa-Manso (134 ha) and Ataasi (29 ha) in the Western Region to
reclaim land degraded through illegal mining activities. These areas
will be planted with economic and citrus trees and handed over to the
communities.
The rationale for such reclamation exercise is to
demonstrate to communities that mined out areas can be reclaimed for
economic use.
Industrial Minerals Development
Clay samples from Accra-Tema (Ashiama, Weija,
Abokobi) were studied for their industrial uses. These were found to be
suitable for industrial use in the manufacture of bricks and tiles. The
results have been made available to interested entrepreneurs for the
possibility of producing some of these items on commercial scale.
Engineering and Environmental Geology for Urban Planning of Accra-Tema and its environs .
Geological mapping and detailed ground
investigations to determine coastal pollution and sanitation sites, and
areas prone to flooding and urban erosion were completed. These are
considered essential to the planning and developmental purposes.
Routine Monitoring of Seismic (Earthquake) Activities
The Ministry, through the Geological Survey
Department, monitored earthquakes occurrences and used the results to
help sensitiSe the public on how to mitigate the effects of an
earthquake.
Relocation of illegal small scale miners (Galamsey)
The Ministry has adopted a policy to accommodate and
support small scale mining within a legal framework. In view of this
development, efforts have been made to identify suitable areas on pilot
basis for illegal miners (Galamseyers) particularly those from Prestea.
Three of such areas have been identified at Japa, Adjumadium, and
Oguakrom and since June 2005 one thousand (1000) of illegal miners have
been relocated at Japa and another 100 at Adjumadium. Other illegal
miners are expected to move to Oguakrom in subsequent months. Efforts
are also underway to carry out further geological work. The success of
this exercise will help the Ministry replicate the resettlement of
other illegal miners in suitable areas.
It is expected that this new initiative will lead to
a better organisation, control and monitoring of small scale mining
operations as is being done in Konongo and Bolgatanga. The increased
production that will be derived from these small scale miners will be
sold to the PMMC for value-addition. In the year 2004, production from
small scale miners totalled 46,570 ounces of gold and 778,401 carats of
diamonds.
The Government through the Ministry also provided
financial assistance of 4.4 billion cedis to the small scale miners in
Bolgatanga and Konongo.
Mining Sector Support Programme (MSSP)
The Ministry, with funding from the European Union (EU) is undertaking the Mining Sector Support Programme.
Activities being carried out under the programme are:
- Airborne Geophysical Survey over the Volta River and Keta Basins
and Geological Mapping of prioritized field sheets for the discovery of
minerals leading to the diversification of the mineral production base
of the country.
- Environmental Impact Assessment and National Strategic Assessment
Programme to measure the effect of past, current and future
consequences of large scale mining operations in order to find
appropriate solutions to them.
- Mercury Pollution Abatement Project which seeks to find alternate
gold processing methods for small scale gold miners to eliminate the
use of mercury. This component when completed will eliminate the
hazards that small scale miners are exposed to.
Review of Legal and Fiscal Regimes
The Ministry has facilitated the drafting of a new
Minerals and Mining Bill based on international best practices, which
will not only make the nation's mining sector internationally
competitive, but also address other stakeholder interests. The Bill is
currently before Parliament. Some of the stakeholders interests
addressed include :
i. Relocation and Re-Settlement of Mining Communities
The Ministry will ensure that appropriate measures
are taken by companies to comply strictly with the “room-for-room”
policy in implementing their resettlement programmes taking into
account their socio-cultural aspirations.
Where communities opt for relocation, the Ministry will ensure that market value rates are paid to beneficiaries.
ii. Compensation for use of land
In the area of compensation the Ministry has taken
note of concerns raised and has therefore taken appropriate measures to
address these concerns. Under the current Bill before Parliament, a
more generous provision has been made whereby an owner or lawful
occupier may be entitled to compensation for deprivation of use of land
and not only for the destruction of crops.