Participatory Land-Use Planning in Ghanaian Rural Communities: An Ethnographic Assessment of Six-Year Implementation Effectiveness

Participatory land-use planning (PLUP) is a governance approach aimed at ensuring equitable and sustainable use of natural resources in rural communities. In Ghana, this method has been implemented to address issues such as deforestation, soil degradation, and biodiversity loss. A mixed-methods approach was employed, incorporating semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions, and document review. Data collection took place in six purposively selected communities across the study area. Communities showed significant engagement with PLUP processes, particularly in addressing local environmental concerns (85% of participants reported increased involvement). However, resource allocation was unevenly distributed among villages (30% of villages reported inadequate resources for implementation). While community participation improved transparency and ownership over land-use decisions, the variability in resource availability hindered equitable outcomes. Enhanced funding strategies are recommended to ensure all communities benefit from PLUP initiatives. Additionally, more targeted training programmes should be developed to improve village-level implementation effectiveness.