Accra: Legal academic and lawyer Kwame Gyan has cautioned prospective land buyers in Greater Accra to exercise extreme caution, particularly in peri-urban areas where land ownership disputes and illegal transactions remain prevalent.
According to Ghana Web, Lawyer Gyan, speaking to Accra-based JoyNews on September 11, 2026, highlighted that most prime and vacant lands along Accra's coastline had already been allocated. This situation has led prospective buyers to increasingly engage in secondary or tertiary transactions. He pointed out that some peri-urban areas might offer opportunities for first or second land transactions, particularly where previous ownership disputes had been settled through the courts. 'Some of these areas, the cases have gone all the way to the Supreme Court. The issue of ownership is settled. If you go into those areas, you are fine,' he stated.
However, Lawyer Gyan warned that several areas on the outskirts of Accra remained vulnerable to litigation due to ongoing land conversion and competing claims over ownership. He cited areas such as Pokuase, Amasaman, and Bosumafise, where lands originally acquired for farming were being converted for other purposes, resulting in disputes between landowners and their grantors.
He also raised concerns about large tracts of state and vested lands on the western and eastern sides of Accra allegedly being sold illegally to unsuspecting buyers. According to him, some state lands around the Weija area, originally acquired for agricultural purposes, were reportedly being illegally sold to private individuals. Additionally, he mentioned areas beyond Dawhenya towards Central University, where large tracts of vested lands were also allegedly being traded illegally.
Lawyer Gyan noted that prime lands closer to Accra were becoming increasingly scarce and expensive, with some available parcels around the Akuapem range measuring at least one acre. He urged prospective buyers to conduct thorough due diligence before purchasing land, stressing that the principle of 'buyer beware' remained critical in areas where ownership was unclear or disputed. 'Because of the peri-urban interface, the principle is clear, that the buyer must beware,' he stated.