President John Dramani Mahama has lifted the temporary ban on the transaction of state lands, which was imposed in January this year.
He said the eight-month suspension had achieved the intended purpose of providing a window for a comprehensive audit of the existing land administration system and its weaknesses, highlighting the urgent need for reforms.
“In pursuit of this reform agenda, my government placed a temporary ban on all state land transactions to enable a thorough review of existing processes.
“That exercise has yielded valuable insights into the weaknesses of our current system and the urgent reforms that are required,” the President added.
President Mahama announced this when he inaugurated the newly reconstituted Governing Board of the Lands Commission at the Jubilee House.
Board members
The Chairman of the Commission is Dr Wordsworth Odame Larbi, who, in accordance with the requirement that the position not be held by a sitting minister or deputy minister, serves in an independent capacity.
Other members are representatives from the National House of Chiefs, Osagyefo Oseadeeyo Agyemang Badu II; the Ghana Bar Association, William Orleans Oduro, Esq; and the Ghana Institution of Surveyors, Surv. Charles K. Sagoe.
Also included are representatives of the 16 regions.
The rest are representatives from the Department of Town and Country Planning, Dr Kwadwo Yeboah; National Association of Farmers and Fishermen, Michael Tetteh Kwetey; Environmental Protection Agency, Prof. Nana Ama Browne Klutse; Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, Hope Boye Agbah, with Prof. Anthony Owusu-Ansah, serving as the Executive Secretary of the commission.
Confidence
The President expressed confidence in members of the commission and the adoption of new accountability and digital management measures.
“Today, with the inauguration of the new commission and the adoption of robust accountability measures, I am pleased to announce that the ban on state land transactions is hereby lifted,” he added.
The move is expected to unlock many stalled real estate and development projects across the country, including regularising and bringing efficiency to the management of state lands.
In line with that, President Mahama further directed the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, together with the Lands Commission, to immediately conduct a comprehensive audit of all state lands allocated, leased or sold, particularly between 2017 and 2024.
He said that where illegality or impropriety was uncovered, such transactions would be reversed and the lands recovered for the state in accordance with the law.
The President added that a committee that was established to look into the sale of state lands had begun its work and would submit its findings soon.
Background
In a memo dated January 10, 2025, and addressed to the Executive Secretary of the Lands Commission, the President stressed the need to protect public lands for the benefit of current and future generations.
The letter signed by the Secretary to the President, Callistus Mahama, stated: “This directive has been issued to protect and preserve state and public lands for the collective benefit of the citizenry and future generations.”
The directive also called for an immediate suspension of ongoing transactions, pending a comprehensive review of policies governing the management of public lands.
Consequently, the Lands Commission was instructed to submit a detailed report of all recent and ongoing transactions involving state lands to the Office of the President within 14 days.
