Akatsi-North farmers - We don't swim to farms after rains

Ave-Dakpa , Oct 05, GNA - Farmers in the Akatsi North District of the Volta Region have rebutted reports alleging farmers and traders in the area are forced to swim to farms and markets when it rains due to bad roads.

The 'Adom News' pasted on the Ghana Web, cited the farmers and traders as saying they could not make ends meet as a result, and wanted immediate help.

But the district's 2013 and 2014 Best Farmers, Alhaji Iliasu Zakari and Mr. David Nyamekor Adorku respectively told the GNA in an interview that the report was an exaggeration.

Alahaji Zakiri said though low lying portions of some roads were normally flooded from overflowing creeks in the peak of the rains those floods normally subsided in three days.

He named such portions as between Ndowukope-Gblongu, Kudzagbagba-Agordza, Gblongu-Ahlepedo, Agormor-Nyitavuta and Normanyokope roads.

' You may ask, how many people know how to swim in the district, which has no major water body and how the traders would carry bags of maize, cassava and other wares on their heads to swim,' he stated.

Mr. Adorku who corroborated his colleague admitted though that some roads were truly not in the best of shapes and needed to be worked on.

Mr. James Gunu, District Chief Executive (DCE) of the area, also debunking the story, said since its creation just barely three years ago, the Assembly and the Department of Feeder Roads (DFR) had taken the road issue seriously.

He said examples were the '27.0 km Akatsi-Tuime-Dakpa of road and many others and yet some contracts for some more were ready to be awarde'.

Mr Gunu said there was also the U-turn road connecting Metrikasa, Bame, Fiave and many others terminating at Hevi.

The DCE said a total of 12.4 km of Ative-Ndowukope, Yevi Junction-Kpohe and Torkpo-Hadave roads were also set for reshaping under a Ghana Social Opportunity Project (GSOP).

He said the area's only tarred road was the Ho-Aflao highway running through it.

Mr. Eric Ekow, District Director of Agriculture said 'there had been no floods in the area even in the main June-July rainy season this year when rainfall was inadequate and many farmers lost their crops….'.

GNA