A PROMISE OR A LIE ? – John Mahama to construct Akunduo’s Bridge

When President John Mahama visited Bongo in February 2024 year, he mentioned of the “Bridge to Akunduo” as one of the priority projects for the district if he wins political power.

This was not the first time a politician is making that kind of statement to the people of the community. Was it a promise or a lie? Time will tell.

The Akunduo community is in a serious need of a bridge to enhance its socio-economic activities as well as save lives of its residents during the rainy seasons. The lack of a bridge over any of its surrounding rivers affects residents’ access to healthcare, school education and agricultural activities of farmers who cross over from other communities.

 

Video credit: WoezorTV

A PROMISE OR A LIE ? – Akunduo to be lit soon

When President John Mahama visited Bongo in February 2024, he assured the district that he would connect its dark communities to the national grid of electricity supply. That it was one of his priority projects for the district if he wins political power. This was not the first time a politician made that kind of statement to the people. Was it a promise or a lie? Will Akunduo be lit soon? Time will tell.

Video credits: WoezorTV

Akunduo is a community in the heart of the Bongo District capital in the Upper East Region of Ghana. The community is very close to the district assembly office; approximately about only one kilometer away from the office. The assembly’s office complex sits on the Electoral Area, the Adaborobisi Electoral Area, that Akunduo belongs. Yet three decades (since 1996) after electricity from the national grid was extended to the district, this community has been denied access to the power they so much need to improve their living conditions. All other communities that surround Akunduo and even those far beyond it have electrical power. This includes some communities beyond the borders of Ghana. Year after year, promise after promise, government after government, persuasion after persuasion, community dwellers relentlessly suffer continual economic backwardness and social hardships related to the lack of electrical energy.

Can this be a case of NEGLECT by district and national authorities? There seems to be no other logical explanation or acceptable excuse for this. Akunduo is a dark spot on the map of the district capital. A dark spot on the conscience of the authorities that it trusted so much over many years. Akunduo …still a dark community.

CRIES OF THE NEGLECTED – Akunduo needs a bridge badly

The Akunduo community is in a serious need of a bridge to enhance its socio-economic activities as well as save lives of its residents during the rainy seasons. The lack of a bridge over any of its surrounding rivers affects residents’ access to healthcare, school education and agricultural activities of farmers who cross over from other communities.

The community is sandwiched between two rivers which are fed with a number of tributaries. One river is along its eastern border and the other along its western border. The two rivers meet to form a confluence at the southern border thereby cutting the community away from the rest of the neighbouring communities and Bongo central where essential amenities such as schools, hospital, pharmacies (OTCs) and markets are located.

 

violent river water cuts off Akunduo at the peak of the rainy season

 

Over the years, lives have been lost due to the lack of a bridge. These included lives of people who needed emergency medical care and some who got drowned trying to cross the river during the rainy season.

Need we write about the loss of school time for children in the community?

During the 2023 BECE examination, for instance, some children had to move in the rain in the opposite direction of the exam centre all the way to Bongo-Soe to join the major road from there to return to their exam centre which is just across the river before their homes. Thus some of them had to travel about seven kilometers away from their homes before doing another eleven kilometers along the Bongo-Soe Road (making a total of 18km) to come to their school or exam centre. If there was a bridge, they would have covered about only one kilometer. They were all late for the examination. If the water does not subside, it would mean that they would sleep away in town or take the same route to return home. This is not an isolated case. It happens many times over the years. With this example, one can guess what happens to children’s education every rainy day.

Farming and other economic activities suffer. Aside farm produce within the community, Akunduo is a transit point to the forest where people of the district cultivate commercial farms. Transportation to and from the forest over the rivers is a challenge.

 

Video credits: ChannelOne TV

CRIES OF THE NEGLECTED – Akunduo yearns for electricity

Akunduo is a community in the heart of the Bongo District capital in the Upper East Region of Ghana. The community is very close to the district assembly office; approximately about only one kilometer away from the office. The assembly’s office complex sits on the Electoral Area, the Adaborobisi Electoral Area, that Akunduo belongs. Yet three decades (since 1996) after electricity from the national grid was extended to the district, this community has been denied access to the power they so much need to improve their living conditions. All other communities that surround Akunduo and even those far beyond it have electrical power. This includes some communities beyond the borders of Ghana. Year after year, promise after promise, government after government, persuasion after persuasion, community dwellers relentlessly suffer continual economic backwardness and social hardships related to the lack of electrical energy.

Can this be a case of NEGLECT by district and national authorities? There seems to be no other logical explanation or acceptable excuse for this. Akunduo is a dark spot on the map of the district capital. A dark spot on the conscience of the authorities that it trusted so much over many years. Akunduo …still a dark community. 

Video Credit: ChannelOne TV

Akunduo Sponsors 20 Deprived Youths on Job Training

Twenty (20) deprived youths – 15 girls and 5 boys – have begun enjoying support from Akunduo Youth Union to start vocational training at Albenco Collection of Business in Dome, Accra.

The youths are drawn from families who are too poor to support them through school; while some have dropped out of school, others have never attended any school before and a few are orphans.

They will acquire jobs skills such as interior decoration, floral decoration, cake-making techniques and general catering among other things related to this vocation.

Akunduo believes that this support will offer the youths an opportunity to develop skills that could give them a meaningful life. This might be the beginning of a Turning Point in their entire life and that of their families.

The young people are been recruited by Divine Village International, a humanitarian organization.

POOR KIDS TOO CAN LEARN ICT SKILLS

ICT makes the world a beautiful village: Bongo’s kids haven’t seen it yet. But you can make that change.

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is the power that is pushing the world's development today. It is very important in every field of human endeavour. The benefits of ICT in education, economic and social development of a people could be innumerable. ICT tools have almost become basic needs for the progress of any society.

Therefore, it is essential for young people (including children) to have free, unrestricted access to ICT tools, especially the computer, which is a basic ICT tool. Sadly, many children in our rural areas cannot imagine what a computer looks like and a much more majority do not have any idea of such a tool. Basic school children in the Bongo District fall under the latter group.

Akunduo Youth Union believes that DETERMINED ACTION by individuals (including organisations) is needed to assist Ghana’s government to reduce and finally eliminate serious hurdles in its efforts to exploit ICT for national development. That is why we are willing and ready to use proceeds from our agricultural and other activities to help develop and maintain ICT Centres for junior high schools in Bongo District.

If you share our believe, please help us with computers or funds to procure computers and other equipment for the centres. This is an opportunity for you to help poor pupils who are in dire need of help. Contact us on AkunduoYouth@gmail.com

It is expected that the ICT Centres will deliver the following benefits to the district.

1. Train JHS pupils to acquire ICT skills to sit the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) as mandated by curriculum as well as give children and youths a better foundation for future employable skills.
2. Provide powerful research and reference environment for both teachers and pupils.
3. Enable schools to register BECE candidates online in the district as required by the West African Examinations Council (WAEC).
4. Improve performance of pupils at the Basic Education Examinations.
5. Inspire youths to take to IT related careers.
6. When the Centre becomes fully equipped with e-learning software suites, digital libraries, educational games and puzzles, interactive video learning resources and broadband internet facility, the centre will

- simplify teaching and learning;

- eliminate routine and boredom in teaching and learning;

- correct slow development and inspire earlier learning;

- develop creativity and concentration in children;

- create more options for both teachers and pupils;

- and ultimately help schools in the district to keep up with growing technology.

Apart from computer literacy, the ICT Centres could go a long way to promote health and sanitation, environmental conservation, human rights, and development in general; thereby improving the social life of people in the district. Socially, Bongo has high rates of school dropout, drug abuse (especially alcohol, tobacco and ‘wee’ i.e. Indian hemp), teenage pregnancy and child rights abuse including child labour, force marriage, parental neglect, and genital mutilation. Akunduo intends to champion seminars/workshops through ICT Clubs that shall be established in various schools to educate both adults and children on these issues as well as HIV/AIDS and related health concerns. Already, Akunduo has acquired some very useful informative materials from some international organisations including Youth for Human Rights International, Drug Free World and Book of Hope to support our advocacy attempts.

It is expected that Akunduo’s initiatives would spark up a generation with a passion to participate in development activities in their communities.