A SPECIAL REPORT ON REGIONAL CONSULTATIVE MEETING ON THE REVIEW OF ZONING GUIDELINES AND PLANNING STANDARDS
The Oti Regional Coordinating Council (ORCC) in collaboration with the Germany Development Cooperation (GIZ) under the Participatory, Accountability and Integrity for a Resilient Democracy (PAIRED) programme on Monday 21st October 2024 held a regional Consultative meeting on the review of zoning guidelines and planning standards.
During the regional consultative meeting, the Oti Regional Minister speaking through the ORCC Chief Director, Rev. Harry Nii Kwatei Owoo, described land as a valuable resource for economic development.
“It is considered a factor of production similar to labour as one of the crucial elements in creating goods and services. Land resources, specifically, are raw materials in the production process, such as trees, oil, and metals among others,” he said. Read More
The three important planning documents under review, he said include the zoning guidelines and planning standards, the manual for the preparation of spatial planning and the new planning model to guide spatial planning practice in the country published under the Town and Country Planning Department in 2011.
These, he mentioned was guided by the town and country planning ordinance Act 1945 (CAP 84) and the Local Government Act, 1993 (Act 462) which have been repealed following the enactment of the land used and spatial planning Act 2016 (Act 925) and Local Governance Act, 2016 (Act 936); hence the need to review the documents to align with the current Land Use and Spatial Planning legislation to make them more relevant.
Rev. Owoo indicated that the review of the documents will give opportunity to update the spatial planning documents with current standards and development trends by the Land Use and Spatial Planning Authority (LUSPA) and other stakeholders.
The ORCC, he added is mandated to provide for sustainable development of land and human settlements through a decentralized planning system to ensure judicious use of land in order to create an enabling environment for District Assemblies to better perform the spatial planning and human settlements management functions within the Region.
This, he noted the Regional Spatial Planning Committee was inaugurated and set into motion on 20th August 2020, this was followed by the inauguration of all the District Spatial Planning Committees in October 2020.
He lamented the inability of the Regional Spatial Planning Committee to meet regularly due to financial challenges but had chocked significant successes. “These include; the preparation of a Local Plan on a 250 acres land donated by the chiefs during the inauguration of this region. Major infrastructural developments are ongoing there under guides of this plan,” he noted.
“It is also worth noting that under the direction of the Regional LUSPA, the RSPC had been able to prepare a draft Structure Plan (SP) for Jasikan, Biakoye, Krachi East, and Nkwanta South. Plans are also under way to replicate it in the remaining five Districts. A proposal has also been done to prepare the regional Spatial Development Framework (SDF) by December 2025,” he said.
For his part, GIZ technical advisor for PAIRED programme, Robert Obenyah, believes the technical workshop marks a significant step toward achieving collective goals thus, providing a platform for knowledge exchange, and innovative solutions that will drive the refinement of our spatial planning systems.
“PAIReD cooperates with public institutions at the national level as well as 60 MMDAs across all 16 regions of Ghana to employ good governance principles that contribute to sustainable development as well as create an environment that improves the lives of Ghanaians,” he stated.
PAIReD works in five areas of intervention by improving the domestic revenue system, strengthening expenditure management according to development plans, fostering land-use planning, fighting corruption and illicit financial flows and strengthening capacities of media and civil society for accountability.
“By working together, we can address the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead, ensuring that our spatial planning frameworks are not only effective but also resilient and adaptable,” he said
GIZ PAIReD,he said stands firmly committed to supporting the revision process that serves the interest of the state actors represented here, who depend on these documents to provide services to the citizenry. “We believe that through open dialogue, knowledge exchange, and collaborative effort, we can ensure that Ghana’s spatial planning framework continues to propel the nation towards a sustainable and prosperous future,” he noted.