Ghana Integrity Initiative holds youth forum on land management, corruption in Tamale

Selected youth groups, traditional authorities and persons with disabilities in the Northern Region have attended a day's forum to enhance their understanding of issues on land management and corruption in the country.It was also to equip them with the knowledge, tools and platform needed to advocate citizens' land rights and to combat corruption using the Ghana Integrity Initiative's (GII) reporting platform.It was organised by the GlI in partnership with the Lands Commission as part of the Land and Corruption in Africa (LCA) phase two project, which is funded by Friends of Transparency International.Mr Michael Okai, Project Coordinator, LCA phase two project, speaking during the forum, said empowering young people to understand their land rights and the effects of corruption was essential to ensuring that they actively participated in land governance and to advocate other reforms.He said, 'Previous efforts to combat land corruption have largely excluded the youth despite their potential to drive cha nge.'He explained that young people, especially those in the rural and peri-urban areas were frequently marginalised on land-related decision-making processes, adding most of them were unaware of their rights and unable to challenge corrupt practices in land management.Mr Okai said it was important for the youth to be sensitised and equipped to appreciate their rights, participate in governance and to advocate transparency and effective land management systems.Mr Samuel Gyarteng, Northern Regional Lands Officer, Lands Commission engaged participants on the Land Act 2020 (Act 1036), which was enacted to reform, integrate and consolidate land laws to promote sustainable land administration and management.He emphasised the need for land buyers to do prior investigations on the rightful landowners, especially areas where there were disputes to avoid confrontations from factions.He urged participants to prioritise acquiring the necessary documentation of their lands from the Lands Commission to ensure sa fety.Mr Issahaku Abdul-Latif, Northern Regional Coordinator, Activista Ghana, a youth advocacy group, commended GII and partners for the forum and called for similar engagements, especially at the community level to enable residents understand issues regarding land ownership.Source: Ghana News Agency