Secure property rights are critical for economic growth. One of the central manifestations of these rights is over land tenure. Secure land tenure can lead to increased access to credit, increased investment, and higher agricultural output. This in turn can lead to significant improvement in household welfare. However to gain access to credit, collaterals in the form of landed property may be required. Following this logic and expectations, the Millennium Development Authority (MiDA) started a Land Tilting pilot program in the Awutu-Senya District of the Central Region of Ghana in 2010. The Institute of Statistical, Social and Economic Research (ISSER) was tasked with conducting an independent impact evaluation of the outcomes after implementation.
The impact evaluation survey sought to examine the effects at different points in the chain of effects (i.e. from perceived tenure security to ultimate household welfare). Such as:
- The effect of land title registration on the perceived tenure security
- The effect of land registration on investments in land (e.g. agricultural improvements, building construction, tree planting)
- The effect of land title registration on access to credit
- The effect of land title registration on crop choice (e.g. between cash and subsistence crops)
The information gathered from the survey would generally aid decision makers in the formulation of economic and social policies to:
- Construct models to simulate the impact on individual groups of the various policy options and to analyze the impact of decisions that have already been implemented and of the economic situation on living conditions of households
- To provide benchmark data for the district assemblies
The survey can be important for planners to know how to improve the quality of people's living standards. National Development Planning Commission, the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MFEP), District Assemblies, Research Institutions, Non-Governmental Organizations and the general public will also greatly benefit from data of this survey.