Land use in Ghana

Land ownership is a little different from what we are used to in Canada. In Ghana, just because you own land doesn't mean that someone else won't live on it or farm it and call your land their land. One plot of land can be sold multiple times and to multiple owners and there are often long court proceedings over who owns what land. The only real way to secure land is to build on it and even then, you are not secure. Your must also be using the buildings you have built. Today we went to have a look at where Bishop Matthias plans on building the Bishop's residence (currently he lives in what is supposed to be the Dean's house and the Dean rents an apartment). The plot of land where the house is to be built is quite large, but already there are people encroaching. They have placed a couple of walls up to show that the land is in use, but right next to one of the walls a garden has been planted. Bishop Matthias plans on purchasing 300 bags of concrete to begin building next year. It is hoped that the new residence would be a place that could comfortably host guests.
We had some time this afternoon to catch up on some sleep and to try to process all that we have seen, heard and tasted. It looks like the service tomorrow is going to be quite something, so we are glad to have some time to recharge. We are also going to the airport tomorrow afternoon. Our flight leaves Accra at 11:25pm and we hope that we won't have any car trouble during the 3 hour drive. Thank you for all your prayers,
Jasmine Chandra