UPPER WESS REGION ...25 Years of existence (PAGE 7)

Article: Chris Nunoo

THE Upper West Region, with Wa as its capital, is 25 years old since it was created from the then Upper Region.
Despite the fact that the leadership of the country at that time heeded the cries and agitation from various quarters for the Upper Region to be divided, because the ‘Wa side’ was not seeing substantial development as compared to the ‘Bolgatanga portion’, the region, after 25 years, is still struggling in terms of development.
In the area of education, for instance, the region is not very much endowed as most school children continue to study under trees. There is also the problem of unavailability of qualified teachers to be teaching in the schools.
This and other problems notwithstanding, the region can boast of some of the very good senior high schools in the country such as the Saint Francis Zavier Seminary and the Nandom Secondary schools.
Thankfully, the region now has a university campus, which is the Faculty of Integrated Development Studies (FIDS) of the University for Development Studies (UDS), as well as a polytechnic, but these two tertiary institutions, which are very young, are still struggling to find their feet.
In the area of health, a lot more ought to be done as the main hospital in the region, likewise district hospitals, does not match the status of modern hospitals. This is because many of these hospitals do not have the facilities to meet the health needs of the people.
Furthermore, the hospitals lack personnel, particularly doctors. The same can be said of the regional police headquarters, which are said to have been built as a district police headquarters but have been serving as the regional headquarters for 25 years now.
Currently, accommodation for the police personnel in the region is a huge problem, with majority of the personnel living in rented houses, some of which are in very appalling conditions. The situation is the same with the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) , the Ghana Prisons Service (GPS) and many other important institutions, which are all working tirelessly to propel the development of the region.
Consequently, in as much as one appreciates tarring of roads in the Wa township and the construction of the famous Bamboi-Tinga roads, together with the extension of electricity to parts of the region, there is still much more to be done and not many people are satisfied with the pace of the provision of these facilities. One major problem is water, which ought to be improved and extended to other parts of the regions.
Much commendation must go to the swarm of non-governmental organisations which are, in their own way, trying to lift life in the Upper West Region from its present state to a better position as far as the nation’s development is concerned.
There is, therefore, the need for stakeholders to critically identify and assess the priorities of the region after 25 years of its existence and work to develop those areas.
Apart from the improved roads in the regional capital, all other roads in the region are in a bad state, especially the roads that lead to some of the major districts and towns. These include the Wa-Tumu, Wa-Funsi and the Wa-Lawra and Nandom roads, thereby making the movement of people and foodstuffs from one area to the other very difficult.
The area needs a modern health facility. Health workers in the region must also be given special incentives as a means to attract more health workers, especially doctors, to work in the region. Ironically, Wa, and for that matter the Upper West Region, has nothing to show as the youngest region in the country. Being one of the three poorest regions in the northern part of the country and the country at large, it has nothing to showcase with respect to economic investment.
The region’s position as the leader, as far as maternal and under five mortality in the country is concerned also calls for stringent and effective mechanisms to reverse the trend as the region celebrates its silver jubilee from tommorrow, May 23 to June 1, 2008, to facilitate the processes which would minimise the mortality rate in the shortest possible time.
All Upper Westerners, government officials and other stakeholders who have the region at heart must, in the face of the difficulties confronting the rapid development of the region, cast their minds back from when the region was created to its present state, put their act together and plan for a better future for the region. This is because like any other region, the Upper West also deserves better.
Considering the issues on the table at the time, the Upper Region was split into two, the then head of state, the late Gen. Ignatius Kutu Acheampong, started the process but his dreams were short-lived as he was overthrown. Before his overthrow, Gen. Acheampong had set the pace to divide the area, initiating the construction of bungalows and multi-purpose offices to house the various ministries, departments and agencies, including that of the Regional Co-ordinating Council. Then came former President Hilla Limann when the country went back to constitutional rule. He also resolved to continue with the process but it was slow because of some constitutional requirements.
Dr Limann was also overthrown and therefore could not succeed in completing what Gen. Kutu Acheampong started. When former President J.J. Rawlings took over power in 1981, he also saw the need to divide the region and so in January 1983, the Upper West Region was created from the Upper Region with Wa as its capital. The Upper East Region has Bolgatanga as its regional capital.
With a total land area of 18,476 square kilometres, representing 12.7 per cent of the total land area of the country, the Upper West Region shares boundaries with two countries namely Cote d'Ivoire, on the west and Burkina Faso, in the north. The present population of the region, according to the 2002 National Population Census, is 576,593, with a population density of 31 per square kilometre (national average is 77).
Before the creation of the region, the Upper West could only boast three districts, namely Wa, Sissala and Lawra districts. Presently, the region has nine districts and these are Wa East and Wa West, Nadowli, Jirapa-Lambussie, Lawra, Sissala East, Sissala West, Wa Municipal and the newly created Lambussie Karni District.
Farming is the mainstay of the people with the cultivation of yam, maize, groundnut and millet as the major food crops produced in the area. A few of the people are also into livestock farming.
Even though the region is very young, compared to others in the country, it has had at least eight regional ministers in its 25 years of existence.
With about five ethnic groups, made up of Dagarbas, Walas, Sissalas, Lobis and a small group of Kasenas, the Upper West Region could be said to be a relatively peaceful region in the country. It has also managed to produce some eminent personalities, including a former Inspector General of Police, Mr Peter Nanfuri, the Vice-President of the National House of Chiefs, Naa Banawini Sando II, the late Cardinal Peter Dery and Dr Edward Gyader, all of whom have in diverse ways contributed their quota to the development of the country.