Land tenure practices in Atebubu, Ghana
Keywords:
Atebubu; commodification; communal fallow; eminent domain; Ghana; land tenure; residual rights; traditionalAbstract
One African traditional system that remains a subject of discussion in policy making cycles and in academia since the 1980s is land tenure. The renewed interest in land is as a result of increased competition and conflict around land and authority over land and the perceived role of land tenure on productivity. In the face of increasing population growth emanating from the influx of migrant farmers and multiple land users like the Fulani Pastoralists and the Sisala Charcoal burners, land has become a scarce resource to the extent that people of Atebubu Traditional Area contest to gain access to land. This paper assesses the nature of land tenure practices in the Atebubu Traditional Area. Through purposive sampling, 75 farmers from two communities in Atebubu Traditional Area and 7 traditional rulers and leaders of government institutions in the Atebubu district were interviewed. The researcher also engaged in active observation and informal discussions. Based on primary and secondary sources, it is established that land tenure practices in the Atebubu Traditional Area is modelled along the traditional political organisation and that tenure arrangement is predominantly customary and communal landholding.
References
Amanor, K. S. (2009). Securing land rights in Ghana in J Hoekema, A., M Ubink, J., & J Assies, W eds Legalising land rights. Local practices, state responses and tenure security in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Leiden University Press.
Amanor, K. (1999). Global restructuring and land rights in Ghana: Forest food chains, timber, and rural livelihoods (No. 108). Nordic Africa Institute.
Austin, G. (2005). Labour, land, and capital in Ghana: from slavery to free labour in Asante, 1807-1956 (Vol. 18). Boydell & Brewer.
Boone, C. (2015). Land tenure regimes and state structure in rural Africa: implications for forms of resistance to large-scale land acquisitions by outsiders. Journal of Contemporary African Studies, 33(2), 171-190.
Boni, S. (2005). Clearing the Ghanaian forest: theories and practices of acquisition, transfer and utilisation of farming titles in the Sefwi-Akan area (pp. 1-272). Institute of African Studies, University of Ghana.
Busia, K. A. (1951). The Position of the Chief in a Modern Political Systems of Ghana. London: Frank Cass & Co, 19.
Chauveau, J. P. (2006). How does an institution evolve? Land, politics, intergenerational relations and the institution of the" tutorat" amongst autochthones and immigrants (Gban region, Côte d'Ivoire).
Evers, S., Spierenburg, M., & Wels, H. (Eds.) (2005). Competing jurisdictions: Settling land claims in Africa (Vol. 6). Brill.
Ghezae, N., Berlekom, M. A. R. I. A., Engstrom, L. I. N. D. A., Eriksson, M. L., Gallardo, G. L. O. R. I. A., Gerhardt, K. A. R. I. N., ... & Walter, S. V. (2009). Natural resource tenure: a crucial aspect of poverty reduction and human rights (No. 23). Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency.
Kasanga, R. K., & Kotey, N. A. (2001). Land management in Ghana: Building on tradition and modernity.
Kasanga, K. (2002). Land tenure, resource access and decentralisation in Ghana. The dynamics of resource tenure in West Africa, 25-36.
Kyerematen, A. A. Y. (1971). Inter-state boundary litigation in Ashanti (Vol. 4). University of Cambridge African Studies Centre.
Ollennu, N. A. (1962). Principles of customary land law in Ghana. London: Sweet & Maxwell.
Peters, P. E. (2009). Challenges in land tenure and land reform in Africa: Anthropological contributions. World Development, 37(8), 1317-1325.
Platteau, J. P. (1996). The evolutionary theory of land rights as applied to sub-Saharan Africa: a critical assessment. Development and change, 27(1), 29-86.
Rattray, R. S. (1929). Ashanti law and constitution. Oxford University Press, London.
Ruffin, F. (2019). Land Governance in the Context of Legal Pluralism: Cases of Ghana and Kenya. In Trajectory of Land Reform in Post-Colonial African States (pp. 91-108). Springer, Cham.
Toulmin, C., Delville, P. L., & Traoré, S. (2002). The dynamics of resource tenure in West Africa. James Currey Ltd.
Wilks, I. (1993). Forests of Gold: Essays on the Akan and the Kingdom of Asante. Ohio University Press.
Downloads
Published
License
This open-access article is distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) 4.0 license.
You are free to: Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format. Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially. The licensor cannot revoke these freedoms as long as you follow the license terms. Under the following terms: Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use. No additional restrictions You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.
