The government has begun a comprehensive process to reclaim public lands that were acquired illegally, as part of broader reforms aimed at protecting Ghana’s natural resources and restoring public confidence in land administration.
The Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Mr Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, disclosed this in Accra yesterday during an engagement with the Vice President, Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang, and her team.
He said Cabinet had approved a full review of all public lands sold or allocated in the past. According to him, any transaction that failed to follow due process or did not provide value for money would be cancelled, while incomplete or unfinished processes would be automatically revoked.
Mr Buah explained that the reforms were intended to ensure that no public official would contemplate acquiring state land for personal use.
He reiterated that the ministry’s mandate was to ensure the sustainable management and use of Ghana’s lands, minerals, forests and wildlife to support socio-economic development.
On forestry, the minister revealed that Ghana had 288 forest reserves, but 44 had been completely destroyed in recent years, with about 16 per cent of the country’s forest cover lost within eight years.
He disclosed that over 8,000 football fields’ worth of forest land had been degraded, mainly in the Western, Western North and Ashanti regions, adding that some forest reserves had become red zones controlled by armed groups.
In response, Mr Buah said the government had launched the Tree for Life Reforestation Initiative, under which more than 28 million seedlings were planted in the first year alone. He added that nine forest reserves had since been reclaimed from red zones and placed under safer conditions.
The minister further noted that Ghana had become the first African country authorised to export legal timber to the European market, a development he said demonstrated improved forest governance.
On land administration, Mr Buah admitted that the system had posed major challenges for many Ghanaians. He said the Lands Commission was being supported to digitise all land records and services to reduce delays caused by missing files.
He announced that land administration services were being decentralised, with 36 new offices already opened and plans underway to establish offices in 110 districts nationwide.
Illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey, was described by the minister as the biggest challenge facing the sector. He said polluted rivers, destroyed cocoa farms and serious health risks were among the problems inherited by the ministry.
Mr Buah revealed that water turbidity levels had risen far above safe limits, forcing some water treatment plants to shut down.
To address the situation, he said the ministry had adopted a five-pronged strategy focusing on stakeholder engagement, regulatory reforms, law enforcement, land reclamation and alternative livelihoods.
He disclosed that over 255 small-scale mining licences had been revoked, mining in forest reserves and water bodies banned, and new tracking systems introduced for heavy mining equipment.
The Vice President, Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang, commended the ministry and its agencies for the progress made so far, describing their work as critical to the survival of the nation.
She noted that the ministry’s portfolio affected the daily lives of citizens and therefore deserved full government support.
Professor Opoku-Agyemang stressed that protecting the environment was not only a moral duty but a matter of survival, warning that environmental destruction—particularly through illegal mining—posed serious threats to health, livelihoods and future generations.
BY AGNES OPOKU SARPONG
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