Deputy Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Yusif Sulemana, has announced that government has approved a new financing arrangement that will allow the Lands Commission to retain 100 percent of its internally generated funds (IGF) as part of efforts to adequately resource the institution to function more effectively.
According to him, the decision is aimed at accelerating the Commission’s ongoing digitalisation agenda, which is expected to transform the country’s land administration system.
Speaking on the floor of Parliament on Friday, November 21, 2025, during the debate on the 2026 Budget and Economic Policy Statement, the Deputy Minister, who also serves as the Member of Parliament for Bole Bamboi, said Ghana requires an estimated US$160 million to fully address the longstanding challenges associated with land administration.
Mr. Sulemana explained that the digitalisation of land services will boost revenue mobilisation, reduce corruption, and create opportunities for landowners to use their properly documented parcels as collateral for loans.
He also reaffirmed government’s commitment to expanding the national tree-planting agenda. Under the Tree for Life project, he revealed that about 13 million seedlings have been distributed so far, out of a targeted 30 million seedlings expected to be planted across the country.
To ensure sustainability, the Deputy Minister said government will deploy digital technology to monitor the growth and survival of trees planted under the programme.
Touching on the timber sector, Mr. Sulemana noted that government has instituted a mechanism to ensure full traceability of timber sources, an intervention that has now opened the way for the renewed export of timber products to international markets.
