Tony Asare
The Ghana Institute of Architects (GIA) has announced a nationwide crackdown on individuals impersonating architects and foreign professionals practising illegally in Ghana.
The move comes at the back of the arrest of a suspect using a duplicated architectural stamp and registration number belonging to a licensed architect.
President of the Ghana Institute of Architects and a Board Member of the Architects Registration Council (ARC), Tony Asare, disclosed this in an interview in Accra.
According to him, the arrested individual’s case came to light after concerns were raised over the authenticity of an architectural stamp used to endorse building drawings submitted to a client.
A registered architect subsequently sought verification of the stamp at the GIA Secretariat, where officials discovered discrepancies in the identity associated with the stamp.
Further investigations allegedly revealed that the suspect, identified as Fiati Kwame Edwin, who is not a registered architect, had been using the registration number and identity of Anthony Parker-London, a licensed architect based in Tema, to illegally endorse building drawings.
Mr. Asare explained that the suspect was arrested by the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service on May 12, 2026, following a joint operation between the police and the Institute.
The duplicated stamp has since been retrieved as part of ongoing investigations.
Mr. Asare said that the GIA is determined to pursue the matter to its logical conclusion to ensure that offenders face prosecution.
“We are not backing down. We are going to pursue this matter and ensure that the duplication of stamps and the impersonation of architects are dealt with according to the law,” he said.
He also issued a strong warning to foreign architects and firms operating in Ghana without the requisite registration and licensing from the Ghana Institute of Architects and the Architects Registration Council.
“If you practice in this country according to law, you must be registered. If not, you have contravened the law, and for every day you practice illegally, you are liable to fines of 12 penalty units,” he said.
Mr. Asare further disclosed that some foreign firms had erected oversized billboards and undertaken projects without satisfying the legal requirements regulating the profession, adding that the Institute would not hesitate to pursue legal action against offenders.
Meanwhile, Mr. Asare has appealed to Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) to verify the credentials and stamps of architects before approving building drawings.
According to him, the Institute has already provided assemblies with direct verification channels, including social media contacts and access to the GIA Secretariat, to facilitate the authentication of architects and their registration status.
He cautioned that assembly officials who knowingly approve drawings endorsed with fake stamps could be deemed complicit should structural failures or related incidents occur.
“The law requires drawings to be endorsed by qualified architects and professionals. If assemblies fail to verify after we have given them the means to do so, then they become complicit,” he warned.
Mr. Asare urged developers and the public to use the GIA online portal to verify architects before engaging their services.
He explained that the portal enables users to search for architects by name and instantly confirm their registration status, photographs, firm details, and registration numbers.
“The more complex your building, the more important it is to engage an architect. Some of the building collapses, poor energy performance, defective design standards, and construction quality issues we have witnessed could have been prevented if qualified professionals had been engaged,” he said.
He added that the GIA, together with the ARC, would intensify public education through media engagements, outreach programmes, and collaborations with assemblies to curb illegal architectural practice in the country.
BY Gibril Abdul Razak