Bongo DCE – Hon. Peter Ayinbisa (right) in a hand shake with Rep of the Contractor
The District Chief Executive (DCE) for the Bongo District in the Upper East Region, Peter Ayinbisa, has handed over eight sites for the construction of dams, under the ‘One Village, One Dam’ initiative promised by the government.
Earlier, the DCE had come under heavy criticisms after promising that the ‘One Village, One Dam’ was going to take off in the Bongo District before the rains set in. In his view, the handing over of eight sites to a contractor to start work will put an end to the doubts and send a clear message that government is committed to the creation of the dam to encourage farming all year round.
Per the handing over of the sites, the Bongo District becomes the first to benefit from the ‘One Village, One Dam’ initiative, which the DCE says is coming from the Ministry of Special Initiatives. It forms part of projects to be covered by the ‘one million dollar per constituency’ promised by the government.
The eight dams have all been awarded to Abooh One Construction Limited and are expected to be completed over a period of four months.
Mr Ayinbisa has asked the leaders of the beneficiary communities to co-operate with the contractor and avoid any interruptions that will cause a delay in the completion of the projects.
“I knew that the projects would come and that is why I promised on radio that the ‘One Village, One Dam’ was going to take off in Bongo before the rains set in. The government is committed to these projects just as he was with the Free SHS and the restoration of the teacher and nursing trainees’ allowance,” Mr Ayinbisa noted.
He, like many development watchers, believes that the creation of the dam will boost agriculture and its related businesses in the district, thereby reducing the rate of poverty in the area.
An engineer assigned to the projects, Douglas Twum, assured the District Assembly that all eight dams would be handed over within the contract period.
“We are capable of constructing two dams at the same time and so we can finish on time. As soon as possible, we will mobilize to get to site and start work ahead of the rains,” Mr. Twum promised.
Government in 2016 promised to pay more attention to agriculture in the three regions in the north, for which reason it would see to the construction of new dams and expansion of existing ones for domestic and farming purposes.
From: Ebo Bruce-Quansah, Bongo