Kassena-Nankana DCE Inspects Projects

Akurugu-Daboo (U/E) Aug. 20, GNA - Mr. George Danyari, District Chief Executive (DCE) for Kassena-Nankana, on Tuesday inspected a number of projects estimated at billions of cedis being executed by the Assembly this year.

The projects include the construction of a 580 million cedi dam for the people of Akurugu-Daboo, the construction of a number of schools, a health facility and the rehabilitation of the Navrongo slaughter house and a number of boreholes.

At the dam site, the DCE expressed satisfaction at progress of work so far, and said government is concerned about food security, especially, in the region and has therefore, made it a policy to construct a number of such dams to facilitate food production.

He said within two years of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration, the assembly has constructed two dams at the cost of 1.2 billion cedis, adding that the construction of the dams would also check the migration of the youth to southern Ghana to engage in menial jobs. He said NPP government appreciates the plight of rural people and would do everything necessary to bring the needed relief to the people. more

The Project Manager of the Irrigation Development Authority (IDA), Mr. Richard Osei Appiah, who conducted the DCE round the project, explained that the dam would have an irrigable area of 20 hectors for 80 households.

He added that unlike the conventional irrigation system, the dam would have pipes connected to tanks for irrigation, in order to effectively conserve and utilise water from the dam.

He said there are five of such projects in the region. Three in the Bawku West District, estimated at 1.6 billion cedis and two in the Kassena-Nankana District worth 1.2 billion cedis and the other one has been completed and is in use in the district.

At the Azaasi community, a three-classroom block, an office and a three-seat KVIP for the primary school at the cost of about 110 million cedis under the Village Infrastructure Project (NIP) of the European Union Micro projects was almost complete. The assembly and the community contributed 25 per cent of the total cost while the (EU) bore the remaining 75 per cent.

Another three-classroom block, an office, and a three-seat KVIP for the Abempiigu primary school, which is almost completed at the cost of 181 million cedis with funding from the Japanese International Co-operation (JICA) under its Aid Counter Value Fund was also inspected. The DCE inspected a 60 million cedi health compound with proceeds from the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) fund. The compound, which is designed to house a health personnel and at the same time, serve, as a health centre is the initiative of the Navrongo Health Research Centre (NHRC) and adopted by the Ghana Health Services.

Mr. Danyari further inspected a multi-purpose market square constructed by the Acheampong government and abandoned half way, which is now serving as an abode for wee smokers, drug peddlers and other criminals.

He said the project is a central government one and involves huge sums of money to construct, which is beyond the assembly's budget. The DCE, who was accompanied by the District Co-ordinating Director, Mr. John Bosco Atuguba, and the Urban Council members also inspected the Navrongo Central market, including the slaughterhouse, which is under rehabilitation. 20 Aug. 03