In a decisive bid to halt the aggressive encroachment and illegal occupation of public property, the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, has inaugurated a 20-member Greater Accra Public Lands Protection Taskforce.
The high-powered taskforce is heavily drawn from key security and state institutions, including the Lands Commission, the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, the Ghana Police Service, the Ghana Armed Forces, alongside representatives from the private sector.
The team has been handed an aggressive mandate to monitor, inspect, and safeguard public lands across the capital region, while leading efforts to aggressively recover state tracts that have been unlawfully seized.
Speaking at the inauguration ceremony in Accra on Wednesday, June 17, Mr. Armah-Kofi Buah declared the preservation of state lands a critical national security and economic priority. He lamented the massive financial and developmental losses the country has suffered due to systemic land grabbing.
“Public lands are not meant for individual exploitation or unlawful occupation. They are strategic national assets that must be preserved for the development of our country and for public use,” the Minister emphasized.
The Minister detailed that the taskforce would serve as the state’s frontline enforcement wing, responding rapidly to active reports of encroachment and providing the structural backing needed to enforce lawful evictions and asset recovery. Given the high stakes and the history of volatility associated with land disputes in Greater Accra, Mr. Buah charged the twenty committee members to discharge their duties with absolute professionalism, fairness, and unwavering integrity.
Adding weight to the charge, the Deputy Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Yusif Sulemana, admonished the newly sworn-in members to resist corrupt influences and maintain transparency in what promises to be a highly scrutinized operation.
“Accountability, transparency, and integrity must be your watchwords,” Sulemana urged the taskforce. “The public is watching, and the state expects nothing less than total commitment to reclaiming what belongs to the people.”
The inauguration marks a vital escalation in the government’s strategy to secure lands earmarked for crucial national infrastructure, public services, and future ecological and civic developments within the rapidly expanding Greater Accra Region.
