Deputy Upper West Regional Minister on SADA (Monday, March 5, 2012 )

Story: Benjamin Xornam Glover, Bolgatanga The Deputy Upper West Regional Minister, Mr. Cezar Kale has echoed the need for the movement of the programmes and policies of the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority, (SADA) from the drawing board to the implementation stage in order to stem the tide of migration in the region and also reduce poverty in that part of the country. “It is about time we harness the numerous natural resource potential of the Upper West Region. Available statistics indicate that if we take the three regions of the north, Upper West is leading with the migration rate with about 52 per cent of the population migrating to the adjoining regions especially Brong Ahafo region were close to about 30 per cent of our population are there and into ventures like farming”, he said . He said with the Upper West Region being more or less an agriculture oriented region, the coming in of SADA coupled with the injection of capital and the provision of irrigated dams, dug outs among others, most of the population who hitherto are forced to migrate will stay and work. Speaking at a high –level joint United Nation Country Team meeting with the Regional Ministers of the Savannah Ecological Zone at Bolgatanga, Mr. Kale bemoaned the continuous use of the region an example of the poverty situation of the northern sector of the country. According to the Ghana Living Standards Survey conducted in 2006, the Upper East Region ranks highest on the poverty levels with 88 per cent. This is followed closely by the Upper East Region with 70 per cent and the Northern Region at 52 per cent The situation, the Deputy Upper West Regional Minister blamed on the inability to tap into and invest into the numerous natural resources which can be used to develop. According to him, the region abounds in a lot of natural resource as well as many other development potential which have not been explored harnessed to the advantage of the people. The high-level meeting which was also attended by officials of the Savannah Accelerated Development(SADA), Regional Coordinating Directors and Regional Economic Planning Officers was to explore together opportunities for further expanding UN assistance towards addressing key priorities of the regional development agenda and strengthening the capacity for implementing district development plans. -End-