HOUSE-TO-HOUSE LAND TITLE REGISTRATION IN ACCRA, ASHANTI (PAGE 39, MARCH 25, 2010)

THE Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources is undertaking a house-to-house land title registration in selected parts of the Greater Accra and Ashanti regions to update the land title register.
The aim of the exercise is to enable landowners to register their lands in a simple, fast and cheap manner.
The exercise, which is on pilot basis, is to reverse the policy of the Land Commission, which was demand driven, to a systematic customer-driven initiative.
The acting Director of the Lands Commission, Dr Wordsworth Odame Larbi, said the present records showed that when the commission was operating the demand-driven policy only 50 per cent of landowners came forward to register their land.
He explained that such a situation did not augur well for development and advancement of the country, since the authorities could not rely on the uncompleted register to plan development of some areas.
Dr Odame Larbi said with the present house-to-house approach, it was believed that the exercise would improve the database for development.
He said areas under the pilot project, which would last for six months, would only pay GH¢50 on receipt of the land title certificate instead of the GH¢250 for property owners outside the pilot area.
Dr Odame Larbi explained that after six months, the exercise would be rolled out to other parts of the country.
Presently there are more than 2,000 land litigation in the southern part of the country with their attendant loss of man-hours in productivity.
Dr Odame Larbi, therefore, urged the residents in Cantonments, Osu, Kaneshie and Dansoman residential areas in Accra and South Suntreso residential area in Kumasi to co-operate to make the exercise successful.
He said all information collated during the six-month exercise would remain confidential and residents should not allow themselves to be misinformed about the exercise.
Dr Odame Larbi urged landowners to take advantage of the exercise, which had been brought to their doorsteps, since landowners who failed to take advantage of the opportunity would have to go through the registration process by themselves and pay the full fees.