Potential tourist site, Dandwa waterfalls deserted, wastes away in Bono East Region

Correspondence from Bono Region:

Residents of Dandwa a farming community in the Nkoranza South Municipality of the Bono East region are appealing to authorities to help revamp an abandoned waterfall in the community.

According to the residents, even though the waterfall discovered years ago has the potential of generating revenue and projecting the community to the outside world, little has been done to benefit from this potential gold mine.

The waterfall, cascading over some rocky ledge into a plunge pool below and surrounded by trees coupled with a serene environment makes the place a nice holiday destination for revelers.

Located on the main Nkoranza-Ejura road and just some six kilometres from Nkoranza, the place is in a bad state as it has not been well developed since its discovery.

A visit to the place by Ghanaweb revealed a very sad spectacle as the place looks busy and undeveloped.

The one-kilometer road leading to the quiet and serene venue also looks terrible and unmotorable, a situation that deters potential tourists from patronising the area.

Independent checks by this reporter revealed that the place was handed over to one Madam Twene Rose some six years ago under a supposed public partnership agreement but the place did not see the needed facelift.

Except four summer huts that have been visibly abandoned in the bush and left at the mercy of the weather and the sound of the waterfall, there is nothing to show that the place is a deserving holiday destination.

The Mmrantehene of Dandwa, Nana Kwame Baffoe decries the sorry state of the waterfall and has appealed to the government to prioritise the waterfall considering its varied benefits it will bring to the area.

“This entire place is part of the waterfall but we have not been able to develop it because we have not received the needed help from the authorities. If this place is developed, it will bring a lot of economic benefit to the youth in this area and so are appealing to the government to help turn the place around”.

The Nkoranza South Municipal Chief Executive Officer, Diana Attaa-Kusiwaa, provides some hope as says the Assembly is making arrangements to turn the place into a befitting holiday destination in order to generate the needed revenue for the Assembly and the country.

Further checks at the Regional office of the Ghana Tourism Authority by this reporter as to why the area has not received the needed attention provided some clarification.

The Bono, Bono East, and Ahafo Regional Director of the Ghana Tourism Authority, Mr. Joseph Appiagyei in an interview disclosed that the Dandwa waterfall issue looks a bit complicated as the area was leased to a private investor some years ago by the traditional authorities in the area.

“The custodians of the place leased it out to a private investor and that woman could not develop the place. Once the area was leased out, the authorities could not have a strong hand to come in. So now if they have ceded it to the custodians or the traditional leaders, they should let us know so that may be we will incorporate it”.

Mr. Appiagyei however assured that with the passage of the Legislative Instrument (LI) that gives them control over all the attraction sites in the country, they will engage the traditional authorities and see how to give the place the needed facelift.