Tema, Feb. 2, GNA – Mr James Dadson, Acting Executive Secretary of the Lands Commission has announced that from the year 2023, prospective landowners in Tema and its environs can register their lands in the Commission’s Tema district office.
Mr Dadson disclosed this when the Commission cut sod for the construction of a two-storey multi-faceted office building for its Tema District.
The current office is located at Tema Community Four after being ejected from the premises of the TDC Development Company.
He said currently potential landowners had to travel to Accra to access some services of the Commission in their quest to register their lands, a situation he acknowledged had many disadvantages and challenges.
“The Commission has four divisions: Survey and Mapping, Public and Vested Lands, Land Valuation, and Land Registration, but currently it is only two that were represented in Tema.
“We think that is not good enough so the decision was taken to ensure that we have the full services of the Commission in the Tema District,” he said.
He noted that the Tema area was the most active market currently within the Greater Accra Region, therefore, the Commission found it necessary to have the office in Tema.
Mr Dadson said, “The significant thing is that when we finish and move in you will no longer go to Accra to transact business where your land is concern, so when you will acquire land in Prampram, Afienya, from TDC you will only register it in Tema so all the services will be available here.”
Mr Benito Owusu-Bio, Deputy Lands and Natural Resources Minister, who planted a tree to kick-start the project said the structure being built on a 0.33-acre land would be operational in February 2023 as agreed with JONACOM Company Limited, the contractors.
Mr Owusu-Bio said when completed the structure would have state-of-the-art facilities which would deepen the integration process to accommodate all the four divisions of the Commission.
He added that it would also eliminate the phenomenon of transporting documents from Tema office to Accra for some operational procedures.
He said the office would also provide an opportunity for the Commission to set up the needed IT infrastructure as part of its digitalization efforts.
The Deputy Minister noted that constructing such offices in the various parts of the country was in line with the Sustainable Development Goal (SGDs) one which sought to promote control and access to land services and ensure secure tenure rights to land with legally recognized documentation.
GNA