SADA to open office in Volta Region

The Savannah Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) is to establish a permanent office in the Volta Region.

The office infrastructure is to make the presence of the Authority felt in the beneficiary districts in the Region, Dr Emmanuel Abere-Inga, the SADA Director of Programmes told the Ghana News Agency.

Dr Abere-Inga, who was speaking on the sidelines of a media launch of SADA Business and Investment Forum (SABIF) 2015, at Tamale, said the UNDP funded office infrastructure would clear perceptions that the Volta Region had been shelved in SADA activities.

He said the office would facilitate SADA programmes and offer opportunities to the local people to determine their needs and potentials.

Dr. Abere-Inga said already, the Region had benefitted from a 500 hectare mango plantation at Kete-Krachi, constituting 25 per cent of all SADA mango plantations.

He said the Region had also received 57 tractors, representing nearly 10 percent as stated in the project disbursement framework.

Dr. Abere-Inga said the Authority would soon construct a landing site in the Krachi area to open up the zone for rapid socio-economic development.

Naba Sigri-Bewong, SADA Board Member, said SADA programmes would be rotated in all SADA zones-Northern, Upper East, Upper West, Brong Ahafo and Volta regions to create equal opportunities for all districts under the programme.

He said the “reformulated SADA” was focused on “total transformation” of SADA districts and the creation of job opportunities for the people through modernized commercial agriculture.

Mr A.B.A Fuseini, the Deputy Northern Regional Minister said SADA had come to stay and called for support from the media.

He was hopeful the ‘new’ SADA would transform the lives of millions of people whose destinies were “inextricably linked to the success of the project.”

The Business and Investment forum, scheduled for March 24 to March 28, this year, is supported by the Ghana Institution of Engineers (GhIE) and it’s expected to facilitate and promote multi-stakeholder investment policy dialogue and business match-making opportunities.

The SADA was established by ACT 805, 2010, to among other things; provide strategic vision and planning, which will ensure accelerated, integrated and comprehensive development of the Northern Savannah Ecological Zone (NSEZ).

The NSEZ covers 63 districts in five regions, representing the northern half of Ghana with a population of 11 million.

The zone is endowed with vast natural resources of flat arable lands, water bodies, mineral resources, including gold, clinker, iron ore and a good tropical climate.