Land, Labour and the Family in Southern Ghana

This report is based on field work carried out in the Akyem Abuakwa area of the forest region of Ghana, a section of the country rich in agricultural land, gold, and diamonds. Through the field work which was undertaken and the empirical material generated, the author attempts to chart the processes and patterns of differentiation connected to land and land use in contemporary Ghana. In addition to class-related differentiation, he also identifies intra-household, generational and gender differences as well as their implications for the mobilisation of family labour and the emergence of new land and labour markets. The conclusions which the author draws challenge some of the dominant theoretical approaches to the land question in contemporary Africa, particularly the evolutionary property rights and communitarian approaches.