Northern Ghana – The hopelessly impoverished and neglected

Northern Ghana comprising Northern Region, Upper East Region and Upper West Region represents 40.96% of Ghana's total land area. In the previous census a total of 4.23 million people were counted on this colossally vast arid land and that represents 17.1% of Ghana's total population. Except the major towns being Tamale, Yendi, Bolgatanga and Wa, the majority of communities and settlements are widely scattered and comprise a few hundred people. Over 70% of the people are poorly and hopelessly employed in agriculture. The aridity of the land and droughty weather conditions have given birth to bushfires whereas traditional agriculture is nothing to write home about.

Further, Northern Ghana is a major exporter of cheap labour and savannah-friendly crops and livestock to southern Ghana. To make things simply, in every aspect of life, Northern Ghana is woefully left behind. And for a century long, The North has had to endure these brutalities and suffering; first in the hands of the colonial masters and now in the hands of our own brothers and sisters. Earlier I stated that the population of the North is circa 4.23 million but this figure excludes the millions of Northerners whose sweat and tears wash the streets of Accra, Kumasi, Sunyani, Obuasi and the rest, powering the economic fortunes of their southern masters.

The majority of Northerners have been known to be poor and sadly so. However, a remarkable number of Northerners have amassed colossal wealth whiles others have excelled to the highest echelons of education and politics. These testaments demonstrate that, Northerners have the willingness and ability to better their living conditions and surroundings, what they truly lack is capacity building. Today, we all know that development is not about structures but rather people.

Again, the North has become synonymous with bad words such as poverty, inferior, hunger, disease, etc. It is sad especially when you consider the bogus fact that Ghana has now achieved middle-income status. Again it should be found contemptible the argument that the North has nothing to offer. Putting aside the quality and numerous human resources that now permeate every sector of our economy and nation, the North has abundant untapped natural resources the least of which is land.

At the tail-end part of the Kufuor-led administration, a document was prepared to establish an office to oversee the development of the North. Soon after his administration was ousted from office, the Mills administration re-engineered the idea and called it the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority (SADA). On the website of SADA it has stated its vision as “Creating a forested and green North by 2030, doubling the incomes of Northern Ghanaians and reducing the incidence of poverty in the Northern Savannah Ecological Belt to less than 20% within 20 years”. There was no adequate information on their website to learn about their programmes considering the website was updated two years ago.

SADA started operations not long after Mills was sworn in as President of The Republic of Ghana in 2009 and to date has enjoyed handsome cash injections from both government and external sources. I was one of the millions of Northerners who took a refreshing and relieving breath hoping that our motherland would also be put on Ghana's map. But alas, we were all mistaken and agonizingly so.

The bane of Ghana's progress being corruption has become the underpinning strategy and agenda of every public official. That is, how to steal from the poor majority to better their lot.

One would hope that a laudable idea such as SADA should research, plan and execute systemic, organized and sustainable developmental programmes but sadly it is spending millions of dollars rearing guinea fowls, planting trees which never grow and just replicating the work of other government agencies in the North. How can the North develop under the prevailing circumstances? This is no time for jokes and experiments; we need people who will roll up their sleeves and get the job done, not 'book-long' politicos who sit in the comforts of their vile offices maneuvering and conniving with contractors to steal from the people. Sometimes one is just forced to let out his anger.

In Ghana now, the farther north you go the poorer you get. And why is that? What is so wrong with the nation that it cannot give fairness, both economic and social to all of its citizens? Why is it that our own brothers and sisters who have ascended to high places, both political and business are not pulling their weights to ensure that the North also puts on its rightful cloth? Why do they stand aside and look whiles the North is perpetually cloaked in shame and injustice? And most importantly, why are they part of the purveying and perpetration of the treachery against the North?

The government has to do more. SADA is a brilliant step towards the emancipation of GHANAIANS in the North from poverty but it has thus far not lived up to expectation. It has to be furnished with patriotic and competent people otherwise, in the end, none will be more blameworthy than he who is seated at the top of the government pyramid and who as it happens is a Northerner. Because if things persist in their present nature for longer than bearable, revolutionary insurrection will unfold in uncontrollable proportions and that is the last thing Ghana wants.

God bless the North, God bless Ghana, our motherland.

Written By: Sonny YENIBEY NAMOUZ
Editor: Allghananews.com
Email: [email protected]