ERADICATION OF POVERTY IN NORTHERN GHANA

Life in northern Ghana is not easy. Living standards are very low compared to southern Ghana.
Development between the north and south leaves a very big gap that will take radical and drastic measures to bridge it. Formal education got to northern after over hundred years of formal education in the southern Ghana. The gap started there and since has not been bridged. The biggest problem is that the northerners who hail from there, and are well-to-do in the south do not ever want to go back home to help a bit. The northerners should try to build their own houses and I believe that outsiders would help them build nice, beautiful, inviting and tantalizing homes.

If all northerners, who, are doing well in the south or in other countries, should team up and contribute in very various to fight poverty in the north, the supposed poverty will be defeated. The professors, the accountants, the lawyers, the medical officers, the military officers, the customs officers, the sports professionals, the police officers, the prison officers, the fire service officers, the bank officials, the miners, the lecturers, the nurses, the station masters, the loading boys, the drivers and all other northern brothers and sisters, who are doing well in the south could all make the north a better place to live if we all contribute money, share ideas and wage a crusade to eradicate poverty in the north.
We all know very well the problem in northern Ghana; low education, no white collar jobs, high poverty level, low rain fall, bad weather, severe harmattan, the land becoming desolate, no potable drinking water for the people, and very unnecessary conflicts.
However, northern Ghana can boast of sunshine for solar power generation, attractive, natural energetic and beautiful women and handsome men, natural tourism sights, hardworking people, cattle, sheep, goats, fowls, pure vegetables, cereals, vast land for maize, rice, groundnuts, sheabutter, mangoes, guavas, many fruits than in the south, sorghum, malt, millet, cotton, wheat cultivation.
Northern Ghana can therefore become one of the most beautiful places in the world if all stakeholders, put their energies and ideas together for a common cause. Northern Ghana currently needs: modern dams, irrigational facilities, fertilizers being available and subsidized, silos, barns, boreholes, canals, and controlled prices for onions, sheabutter, tomatoes, poultry and other livestock. Solar energy should be tapped for power generation for factory use and for use for many other activities.

There should be financial assistance and grants to farmers without impediments or middlemen.
If it is true that we all want the eradication of poverty in the northern Ghana to become a reality, then:

• Parliamentarians from the north should start now. They should form an association to contribute money and ideas to embark on developmental projects in the north. They can say for instance that, this, month, this year, the next three weeks, the next five years, we all MPs from northern Ghana, we are contributing to construct a northern dam for a particular place, village or town. After this, then they embark on another project. Next time they all come together to construct a canal for a particular place. Their projects could be long or short term projects. As far as democracy prevails in Ghana, there shall continue to be Mps from northern Ghana, so it does not matter who and who are MPs, what matters is that the association should be a non-partisan association.

• Professional accountants from northern Ghana should form their own association and contribute funds to embark on other projects, like, constructing commercial, technical schools, and computer centres etc.

Lawyers from northern Ghana should form an association to embark on other projects, e.g. library complexes, etc.

Medical doctors, judges, lecturers, teachers, nurses, drivers, station masters, and all northerners in southern Ghana should contribute.

Nobody would build the north for us, not even a president from the north.

It’s a collective responsibility

The central government must have a non-partisan long term development policy and plan for northern Ghana. The government should begin to encourage oneness, unity, let the rule of law really work in northern Ghana to forestall the unnecessary conflicts over there among northern brothers and sisters, and to promote peace and unity for development
• Government should build modern hospitals with the state-of- art facilities. Modern schools, primary, JHS, SHS, polytechnics, universities, build tourist attraction places in northern Ghana. I challenge the present and future governments to help turn northern Ghana into an oasis of tourist attraction in the years to come. Only our imaginations limit us to the possibilities and opportunities that exist in northern Ghana. There abound endless opportunities in northern for generations to come.

Others like NGOs, foreign Investors, ADB, NIB, etc. should all assist heavily, meaningfully for the development of northern Ghana.

• The elimination of some cultural practices and the eradication expensive funerals and marriage rites in the north.
• SOURCES OF FUNDING:
• A compulsory fund set up for long term development of the north. I am not talking about a fund that is not backed by law and will be discarded when there is a new government. This fund should be constitutionally recognized and entrenched.

Chiefs in the north should be encouraged to organize their subjects and divisional chiefs to levy their subjects compulsorily every year, some small amount for all grown-up residents in the north. I believe many both men and women could contribute at least GHC 2 during their harvesting period, between November and January each year. The people, who contribute should know the purpose for their contribution and the money should be paid into a bank account that only credible, well meaning people who live among the contributors and have been nominated as members of the management of such a fund, should be allowed to sign for withdrawals and make sure all monies collected have been deposited into the right account.

Government should link up with the Agricultural Development Bank (ADB), National Investment Bank (NIB) and foreign investors and encourage them to invest in northern Ghana.

• Laws should be passed to enforce and encourage northerners to contribute towards the development of north.

• Philanthropists should be encouraged to assist develop the north.

On Thursday, 24th September 2009, the Ghanaian Daily Graphic reported that, there was going to be a business fair in Tamale, the northern regional capital, starting from 28th September 2009. I applaud the originators and organizers of this business fair. More of these business fairs and similar ones should be encouraged in the north..

There were worse places elsewhere in the world than the situation in north Ghana, but the natives and the government have been able to turn such places into some of the best places on earth. It can be done in northern Ghana. Let us all contribute our quota to make northern Ghana a blessing for us and a manifestation of God’s wonderful, beautiful creation. God has given us wisdom and has provided everything for us to use to eliminate poverty in the north and make the north a place where life could be freely enjoyed.

I still have wonderful memories of my childhood in the village of Zaago near Bawku.

It was great, we would swim in the village dam, play games, wrestle one another, ride horse and donkeys and many other nostalgic memories.

Long life northern Ghana, Long live Ghana

©2009, Godwin-Xavier Ayeebo,
Blog: www.g-xavierayeebo.blogspot.com
Email: gayeebo@gmail.com