01 - Who we are
We are an NGO committed to demystifying a complex land sector to reduce vulnerability and balance power.
Our Beginnings
COLANDEF was established, registered and started its operations in Ghana in November 2004, as Community, Land and Development Foundation.
In 2019, we re-registered the organization as COLANDEF LAND and PROPERTY RIGHTS to reflect the renewed scope and coverage of our work, which now went beyond the community level.
Over the years, we have grown through our operations and focus on land and landed resources in all sixteen (16) regions of Ghana.
Our Mission
COLANDEF is a non-governmental organisation.
At COLANDEF we care about the impacts of the land tenure insecurity of agricultural households and so we spearhead the creation of inclusive land policies and robust land governance systems for increased access to, and security of tenure for smallholder agricultural land users in Ghana.
Our Vision
We envision an end to agricultural land tenure insecurity under a unified land sector.
02 - Why we act
The livelihood, health and food security needs of smallholder households are intrinsically linked to agriculture.
03 - Our Big Idea
A demystified land sector that reduces vulnerability and balances power.
04 - What sets us apart
Knowledge
We have access, knowledge, and data on all the customary land authorities in all 423 customary land authority jurisdictions in Ghana.
Expertise
We are not only passionate advocates and systems change organization. We are also technical experts in land tenure.
Relationships
Through our work, we have mobilized a consultative platform of all Queen mothers in Ghana through which we deliver sustained women’s land rights campaign all year round.
05 - Our core values
Collaboration
At each level of our work, we build strong partnerships with the various actors (both public and private) at all levels in the land sector and beyond, if need be, to leverage all the technical and resourceful ideas that may impact our work and help drive our vision into reality.
Integrity
We are real in all we do and in our interactions with all the people we engage with at all levels. While we have a well thought out vision that drives all we do, we recognize that we are human and have our own limitations. We do not know it all. We therefore commit to learning as an on-going process just as we encourage our stakeholders to also learn.
Passion
We are fully committed to our vision, both in heart and mind. Since the beginning, we have focused on promoting land tenure security for customary land rights holders. We demonstrate our passion in this course by ensuring that we truly serve the needs and interests of customary land rights holders we represent.
Advancement
We advocate for national laws and policies to that take into consideration the situation of customary land rights holders to influence national policies and legislation to allow institutions adapt and sustain useful interventions that work for customary land rights holders.
