Agric Ministry awards contracts for feeder roads(September 29, 2012. Page 18)

Story: Benjamin Xornam Glover, Bongo The Minster of Food and Agriculture, Mr. Kwesi Ahwoi has cut the sod for the commencement of work on a 9 kilometre feeder road from Akansiringa to the oncho-free zone farmlands in the Bongo District of the Upper East Region. The project which is expected to be executed in one year is estimated at GH c 852,529.30. When completed, it will increase access to about 5,000 hectares of fertile farmlands which will be conducive for the production of staple crops such as rice, maize, millet, soyabean, groundnuts, cowpea and boost livestock production. The project, forms part of the road component of the Northern Rural Growth Programme, (NRGP) and is being financed by the African Development Bank while the International Fund for Agriculture Development,(IFAD) is financing the agricultural value chain development component. The project is one of 53 lots of roads distributed in all four regions of the NGRP coverage area as follows: Upper East, 11 lots with a total length of 103.7 kilometres, Upper West, 12 lots with a total of length of 107.5 kilometres, Brong Ahafo, 10 lots with a total length of a total length of 77.95 kilometres and Northern Region, 20 lots with a total length of 203.53 kilometres. Handing over the Akansiringa project to the contractor, Mr. Ahwoi said the Ministry attaches so much importance to the project and cautioned all the 53 contractors who have won bids to deliver on time emphasising that Ministry will not hesitate to terminate the contracts that are unduly delayed due to the fault of the contractor. “They (contractors) should also note that any contract that is terminated, the name of the construction firm and their directors will be blacklisted and their information circulated to all government projects, ministries and donor communities” he warned. On the other hand, he said if a contractor delivers in time and in good quality, that firm will also gain the status of a firm of very good standing and the same information about the firm will be circulated accordingly. “The era where contractors thought that contracts when awarded cannot be terminated are over and legal actions will be pursued to recover any monies owed to the government by the contractor”, he stressed. Mr. Ahwoi noted that a good road network is very critical in the fight against poverty and for the agricultural sector, roads opens up production areas to marketing centres. He said in Ghana as in many other areas, the high cost of food is not just due to the production cost but high transport charges from the farm gates to the markets leading to situation where transporters even make more profits than the farmers. He said in high incidence of poverty in the Bongo District is not because the people are lazy but because of very poor land resources coupled with the incidence of the onchocerciasis, which has long been controlled, hence the need to open up the area for farmers to cultivate the vast fertile land which can turn the Bongo area into a net food exporting district. He said the ministry will monitor the impart of the road when completed in terms of the number of tractors, motorised tri-cycles, and food trucks that will use it and the resultant food output and if the number of returns are high, the ministry will work with the District Assembly to establish a Farmers Service Centres where inputs dealers and mechanisation service providers will be encouraged and supported to set up their businesses there to boost agricultural production. He bemoaned the rampant smuggling of subsidised fertilisers and appealed to farmers in border districts such as Bongo to be vigilant to ensure that government commitment to make fertiliser available and affordable is not thwarted by smugglers. The District Chief Executive for Bongo, Mr. Clement Tia Akugre commended the government for opening up the area through the construction of the roads. He said apart from increasing crop production will greatly increase the number of people who will engage in farming activities thereby creating employment opportunities for the majority of the people in the district. He said in recognition of the important role these communities in the oncho-freed zones contribute to agriculture, the assembly has already constructed two boreholes and intend to construct more to make life more meaningful to the people who live and work in those farming communities. Mr. Akugre also commended the NGRP for supporting the Bongo District is the areas such as the development of 36 acres of rice valleys, as well as assisting 78 farmers on improved technology on soil and water conservation amongst others. The Paramount Chief for Bongo, Naba Salifu Atamale Alemyarum commended the efforts of the ministry of agriculture and the NRGP for the intervention in the area. He also lauded government for initiating the block farming concept which he said are yielding results. Naba Alemyarum, who has launched an initiative to stop bush burning and indiscriminate three cutting urge the people in the district to plant more trees to support his fight against desertification. -End-

Mass vaccination against CSM in UE(Saturday, September 22, 2012. Back Page)

Story: Benjamin Xornam Glover, Bolgatanga Health workers and volunteers in the Upper East Region will embark on a mass vaccination against the deadly cerebrospinal Meningitis or CSM. The exercise which will start from October 2 to October 12, 2012 will also be carried out in the Northern and Upper West Regions. Persons to be vaccinated are those within the age group of one to 29, including pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers who constitute the most vulnerable group. The meningitis season, starts from October every year. Between January and February 23, 2012 the Upper East Region recorded a total of 102 cases and 16 deaths. During the last outbreak, sporadic cases of both type ‘A’ and W135 strains were recorded in the Upper East Region. Briefing the press at Bolgatanga, the Deputy Regional Director of Health Service in charge of Public Health, Dr. James Akpalie said this time round, the vaccination exercise, known as Men Afric Mass Vaccination is against serotype A, one of the bacteria that causes CSM. Dr. Akpalie said the objective of the campaign is to reduce the incidence of meningitis epidemic that regularly hits the northern sector of Ghana which lies in within Africa’s meningitis belt, maintain stock of vaccines for epidemic response and enhance national capacity in dealing with the situation. He added that the vaccine will give the targeted group a long term protection from CSM caused by serotype A. In the Upper East Region, he said the campaign aims at vaccinating a target of 768, 386 persons representing 95 per cent of the target population, that is persons within the ages of 1 and 29. The Deputy Regional Director said the exercise will take place in health facilities, designated temporary immunization posts set up in schools, markets, lorry stations, churches, and mosques adding that camp out teams will also move and settle in hard to reach communities to administer the injections. Dr. Akpalie said the Men Afric Mass Vaccination will be given as an injection on the left Upper arm by a trained health worker throughout the region and therefore appealed to residents of the region to collaborate to ensure its success. On the possible reaction after receiving the vaccine, he said the most likely reactions include mild pain or swelling at the site of injection, mild fever, mild diarrhea, irritability and loss of appetite. He however gave the assurance that these side effects are not serious and will not last for long. He also advised that in case of adverse reaction, people should not panic but visit the nearest health facility or seek advice from a health work for proper treatment. Dr Akpalie said the involvement of all stakeholders is important in an exercise such as this and therefore called on all including District and Municipal Assembles, churches, mosques and the media to ensure the success of the Men Afric Mass Vaccination serious to prevent deaths, permanent disability and excessive medical cost for diagnosis and treatment. The Upper East Region has had its fair share of the tragedies as a result of CSM outbreak. Between 1996 and 1997 when the region was hit by a major CSM epidemic, 18,703 cases recorded with 1,356 deaths. In 2009, 25 persons died of CSM in the Upper East Region while in 2010, with an outbreak in the Bongo district, 62 people died of CSM in the region out of reported 404 cases. In 2011, out of 212 cases in the region, 40 people lost their lives. Men Afric Mass Vaccination serious to prevent deaths, permanent disability in children and adults and excessive medical cost in terms of diagnosis and treatment. -End-

UE houses lack toilets(The Mirror-Saturday September 22, 2012 Page 29)

Story: Benjamin Xornam Glover, Bolgatanga Landlords in the Upper East Region have been cautioned to desist from converting toilets in their homes into rooms for renting. The practice when stopped will help to improve sanitation and hygiene conditions as tenants who are compelled to defecate in the open due to the unavailability of the facility, will be discourage from the act. Open defecation is widespread in the Upper East Region with about 90 per cent of the people without any form of latrine. Amongst the contributory factor is none availability of sanitary places and the attitude of people as well as ignorance of the harmful effects of open defecation. The Deputy Upper East Regional Minister, Madam Lucy Awuni who made the call at the inauguration of a Regional Inter-Agency Committee on Sanitation, (RICCS), at Bolgatanga also tasked municipal and district assemblies to enforce regulations that demand that every household has a clean household toilets to improve hygiene and sanitary behaviors. The role of RICCS will among others provide policy direction, plan, review progress and share experiences that will lead to a harmonized approach to water, sanitation and hygiene(WASH) delivery in the region. Madam Awuni noted that the sanitation situation in Ghana is one of the most important challenges affecting the health and development of the people, little wonder governments over the years have made several efforts at addressing the problem with the latest being the constitution of a National Task Force to clean the filth in the county within the next three months. “Here in the Upper East Region, it is very worrying to see our Municipal and District littered with waste and our drains choked with waste. This to a large extent has contributed to some of the floods being experienced in some residential areas”, she said. While calling on the committee to lead efforts at eliminating the canker of poor sanitation in the region, Madam Awuni also advised the populace to lend their support to deal with the problem. “Throwing of waste from moving vehicles and dumping of household refuse into water channels and at any available space with impunity is the order of the day but surprisingly passers-by, neighbors and friend do not see anything wrong with these behaviors. We all have a role to bring an end to this”, she said. The representative of UNICEF, Madam Emma-Joan Halm said although Ghana achieved its 82 per cent national coverage for access to improved water sources as far back as 2008, against the set Millennium Development Goal (MDG) target of 78 per cent by 2015, sadly, achievement for sanitation coverage is hugely off track. She said given the MDG sanitation target of 54 per cent by the deadline of 2015, there is the need for a concerted effort to meet the set target. To address that, she said a number of strategic measures have been established to reverse the poor sanitation coverage. Among these are the adoption of community led total sanitation as a national strategy and the development of the rural sanitation model. She commended the government for showing political will by launching a compact on sanitation and water for all, with a commitment of more than $ 350 million annually for improved water, sanitation and hygiene services as a whole. She further disclosed that in March this year, the Upper East Region received GH c 50,000 as part of government’s support towards community led total sanitation activities in the region. On behalf of UNICEF, she expressed the hope that the committee will work hard and contribute to achieving results and improving the lives of children and women particularly. Membership of the committee is made up of representatives from the Regional Coordinating Council, Community Water and Sanitation Agency, Regional Environmental Health and Sanitation Unit, Ghana Education Service, Department of Community Development, the Red Cross Society and Civil Society organizations. -End-

torrential rains displace 700 in Sandema(Friday, September 21, 2012 Back Page)

Story: Benjamin Xornam Glover, Bolgatanga Heavy rains in the Sandema in the Builsa North District of the Upper East Region have displaced over 700 people. This was due to torrential rains experienced in the area on Wednesday evening. The flood affected 300 houses which were either submerged in water or had parts of their roofs and walls destroyed. In an interview with the District Chief Executive for the area, Mr. Norbert Awulley said a number of culverts connecting roads such as Sandema-Navrongo, Sandema, Fumbisi and Sandema-Seniensi have all been washed off. Affected persons are currently seeking shelter with relatives while officials of the National Disaster Management Organization are rallying to see how best to assist the victims. According to him, this resulted in a spillage of water from the main drains and diverted into individual homes causing damage to personal effects such as television, furniture, mattress, and computers amongst others. He however said as at Thursday morning the flood waters had receded with some residents sifting through what remains of their properties to see what can be salvaged. Mr. Awulley said in addition to destruction to homes and properties, some poultry products and livestock were also lost in the floods. The District Chief Executive who is also the Chairman of the District NADMO said the extent of destruction was massive adding that NADMO has already exhausted its stock of relief items as a result of an earlier disaster which stroke the area. He said officials are carrying out an extensive assessment to see what form of assistant can be given to the affected persons. The DCE said generally Sandema is a low lying area and very susceptible to floods with any heavy rains. He appealed to central government,other non-governmental organizations to come to the aid of the people in the area. -End-

Bawku hosts peace workshop(Thursday, September 20, 2012. Page 22)

Story: Benjamin Xornam Glover Foundation for Security and Development in Africa (FOSDA), has organized a two day peace workshop for civil society organization as well as political parties, youth groups and traditional leaders on the need for peaceful co-existence ahead of the national elections in December this year. The workshop was on the theme “Ghana Election 2012 Ballots –not-Bullets” and Bawku was among the venue chosen for the workshop due to the volatility of the area. It was basically to engage all stakeholders in the elections in a dialogue on the need to choose peace instead of conflict. The Programmes Coordinator for FOSDA, Mr, Seidu Imoro explained that election years and highly charged political campaigns have often sparked violent and sometimes deadly conflicts in areas such as Bawku hence the need to engage the youth, security forces and other stakeholders in the area to stop violent conflicts before they begin. He said that in Ghana, FOSDA with support from IBIS-Ghana and the United Nations Development Program, are embarking on similar programmes in Navrongo and Paga in the Upper East Region, Wa in Upper West Region and Yendi, Gushegu and Tamale Metropolis in the Northern Region. Mr. Imoro said the “Ballots not Bullets” project aims at training the youth and other members of the community such as women in ‘conflict hot spots’ to serve as Peace Ambassadors and also position them elections monitors on voting day to contribute to a successful poll. He said FOSDA first introduced and funded a “Ballots not Bullets” campaign in Ghana’s 2004 elections and since then with support from its partners has extended its campaign to countries like Liberia, Togo and Sierra Leone elections Mr. Aiden Naa Sarbie, who facilitated the programme, told the participants that as a student for conflict and peace study, there was the need for people to make a choice to build peace. “Prayer and exaltations alone will not lead to attaining a peaceful and trouble free elections. There is the need for all players in the elections to work closely to sustain the peace”, he said. The Bawku Municipal Police Commander Chief Superintendent, Samuel Alordey gave the assurance the security agencies will be adequately deployed on elections days to ensure that polling stations in Bawku especially those identified as flash points” or “hot spots” do not witness an escalation. The Municipal Electoral Officer, Mr. Kofi Asante Owusu called for extensive education and understanding of the electoral processes to avoid unwarranted misunderstanding between party agents, the security agencies and the presiding officers at the polling stations. -End-

Floods destroy houses, farm produce(Tuesday September 18, 2012. Back Page)

Story : Benjamin Xornam Glover, Pwalugu Hundred of farmers in the Talensi District are counting losses after floods swept away their crops. Over the past two weeks, more than 2,000 acres of farmland in the district comprising, maize, soybeans, groundnuts, cowpeas, millet and sorghum farms have been destroyed by the floods following heavy rains which have been pounding the area. The rains coupled with the recent spillage of water from the Bagre dam have continued to cause havoc in the area. Waters from White Volta River have overflowed its banks making residents living near the river and those with farmlands at the banks of the river to panic. Mr. David Adakabla, a commercial farmer and one time Upper East Regional Best farmer who disclosed this during a field visit by the Member of Parliament for the area, Mr. John Tia Akologu said along the banks of the White Volta river alone, about 500 farmers and about a 1,000 acres of farmland with crops were lost due to the heavy rains. “This year’s rain surpasses that of 2007”, he said adding that farmers might have total crop failure in their farms since their farms were submerged. “Most of us farm along the banks of the river because the area is very fertile and require less fertiliser and chemical” He said because, the area experienced normal rainfall last year, most farmers did not anticipate flooding this year, hence the heavy investment into the venture this year only for the produce to be consumed by the floods. Mr Adakabla said on hearing of the warming of the spillage of the Bagre dam, farmers started the evacuating of their produce but the rains came in very heavy flooding their farms adding that the farmers could not do much to salvage their produce. Mr. Adakabla said most of the farmers have been counting huge looses after the rains wash away all the crops and the investment they had put in the farms adding that most of them they rely on the produce from their farms to earn a living. He therefore appealed to the government to aside the distribution of relief items offer farmers logistical and material support such as water pumping machines, fertilisers, to enable them embark on dry season farming to make up for the lose. He also supported the idea by the government to build a multipurpose dam at Pwalugu to harness the flood waters for both irrigation and hydroelectric power generation. Mr. Adakabla also suggested the digging of tube wells in the vast farmlands in the area to ease the farmer’s agony. Mr. John Tia Akologu empathised with the farmers over their lost and said as a long term measure; government will have to fast track the process of constructing the dam at Pwalugu to curtail such annual occurrence. He said the nature of farming in the area is seasonal as such the magnitude of the destruction has a rippling effect on the people. “Our people will be impoverished and will not be able to access so many health facilities because they may not be able to pay health services if they are not on the national health insurance scheme. They will not be able to provide for their children’s need for school.” He said. Mr. Akologu also inspected the Northern Star Tomato Factory to inspect the extent of destruction caused after flood waters inundated parts of the factory premises. He also called on the bereaved families of a 29 year old woman, Ms Cynthia Kadeni, who together with her 14 months old daughter were swept away by floods waters at Datoku as well as another family at Duusi, whose entire house collapsed during the floods. The Talensi Nabdam District Coordinator of NADMO, Mr. Mahama Ken Karza, said in total 992 farmers have been displace in the floods. The situation he said poses a serious threat with respect to food security in the district. He said NADMO has received some relief items which will be distributed to the victims of a flood disaster in the district. -End-

BOLGA-BAWKU ROAD CRIES FOR ATTENTION(Tuesday, September 18, 2012. Page 23)

Article: Benjamin Xornam Glover, Bolgatanga Anytime I have had to make a trip to Bawku to cover an assignment, I get so furious and angry. Angry not because the programme is not worth the coverage, but because of the horrible state of the 75 kilometre stretch of road linking the Regional capital to Bawku, a major town in the Upper East Region. Not only does the route link Bolgatanga and Bawku but also connects Ghana with the Sahalian countries of Burkina-Faso, Niger, Mali and northern Togo. Being an international route, it serves as a major boost for economic activities. In all my eight years stay in the region, I have seen deterioration of the road move to worse to worst. The annual pot-hole patching works carried out by the Ghana Highway Authority have not help matters as every raining season expose the shoddiness of the work carried out. The 75 kilometre road runs though towns like Zuarungu, Kongo, Nangodi, Tilli, and Zebilla is riddled with potholes, which make it difficult for vehicles to ply the route. This has been aggravated by the recent torrential rains that hit the region. The Zuarungu-Nangode-Tilli forest route is the worst damaged section of the Bolgatanga to Bawku stretch. Some businessmen and women in a random interview with the Daily Graphic have complained that the bad state of roads is hurting trade within the region and with the Sahalian countries. Bawku and its environs is noted for the supply of onions, rice, guinea fowls and livestock to the southern parts of the country Ordinarily, a journey from Bolgatanga to Bawku is supposed to one and half or two hours at most but it now takes three to three and half hours due to its bad state. Commercial vehicles and articulated trucks loaded with goods get stuck on the way further heightening the dangers on the way especially at spending nights on the way. Highway bandits have also taken advantage of the bad nature of the road to lay ambush around the Tilli forest to rob travelers of their possessions. A situation that has forced the police administration to deploy personnel at that section of the road to ward off bandits. Many commercial drivers at the Bawku station in Bolgatanga told the this writer they have repeatedly changed their broken springs and shock absorbers, exhaust systems and other damage done to motor vehicles because of the poor state of that road. The state of the road has been a major source of worry for the ordinary person in the region. The drudgery one has to endure is simply unbearable. Both commercial vehicle drivers and owner of private cars have had close shave with death due to the series of pot-holes on the stretch of road. It will be recalled that on April 22, 2010, the Deputy Upper East Regional Minister, Mrs Lucy Awuni then on her way to Garu to inspect the extent of damage caused floods in the area in a company of five journalists were involved in an accident when her car ran into a ditch right in the middle of the road at Benguri. The Deputy Minister and the other occupant’s sustained injuries after the 4 x 4 veered off somersaulted several times before landing. Another major accident on that stretch of road due to the presence of a series of pot-holes was one involving the Majority Leader of Parliament, Mr. Cletus Avoka, his driver and bodyguard, who were racing to Garu to join late President Mills for the launch of the White Gold campaign relating to the cotton industry Saturday 26th March 2011 The 4 x 4 vehicle on reaching Lamboya near Zebilla, bumped into a large pot-hole sending the car off the road into the bush. In his case the vehicle was damaged beyond repairs but luckily the occupants survived with minor injuries. These are but a few examples of dangers travelers using the Bolgatanga –Bawku road encounter almost on a daily basis. I personally frequent that stretch of road and I recalled on two occasions, the front right tyre of the commercial bus I was travelling in came off its hold when it bumped into one of the numerous pot-holes on the road. It only took the grace of God on both occasions to come out unscathed. During his recent thank you tour of the Upper East Region, President John Mahama acknowledged the challenges motorists face on that stretch of road and announced that government has started the procurement process with the hope that in the next few weeks, the people in the region will see a contractor mobilized on that road to put it in a shape befitting a road linking the two biggest commercial towns in the upper east region. Well in the past two weeks, the region have experienced heavy rains and aggravated the difficulty in travelling on the road. The existing pot-holes have expanded further enhancing the risk of accidents on the road. Users of the road are patiently waiting for the said contractors to move to site and fix the road which has become a death trap especially after the recent torrential rains has worsened the state of the road.