Akateng: A bustling community battling numerous challenges

Akateng which lies on the banks of the Afram River that forms part of the Volta Lake, is a rural community in the Upper Manya Krobo District of the Eastern Region.

The over 6,000 inhabitants of the community are mostly farmers cultivating various crops such as maize, cassava and cocoyam, as well as vegetables such as cabbage, onion, tomatoes, pepper and garden eggs.

A significant number of the residents are fishermen who rely solely on the Afram River for their catch, made up of different species of fish such as tilapia and catfish, among others, while some of them are traders.

It is, therefore, a bustling community, especially on market days, which fall on Wednesdays and Thursdays.

During these days, particularly on Wednesdays, the town is crowded with hundreds of people made up of farmers selling their farm produce and fishmongers purchasing fish from the fishermen. 

Also, the price of cattle transported from other parts of the Afram Plains or elsewhere to the town has to be bargained for at an unstructured centre (Turaaku), which inconveniences both buyers and sellers.

Trading

Many traders from far and near such as Accra, Kasoa, Tema, Ashaiman and Koforidua, with various manufactured goods such as textiles, shoes, detergents and jewellery, also converge on the town to sell their wares.

Despite these activities, the town has no good market for commercial activities.

Traders and sellers, therefore, have to do business under canopies and umbrellas while others trade in the open with no cover.

Undertaking commercial activities is a big challenge during the harmattan period when the sun rays become unbearable and during the rainy season when both buyers and sellers get drenched.

The canopies and the umbrellas are also normally not able to withstand the torrential rainfall.

No lorry park 

To make matters worse, there is no lorry park. As such, the vehicles bringing in manufactured commodities and foodstuffs, as well as other vehicles carrying away goods and passengers, park along the shoulders of the only road leading to the town while others have to be parked in any space available between buildings.

Such a condition makes it difficult for the vehicles to either park or move, with all the attendant challenges such as the possibility of trampling on goods, animals or even human beings.

In reality, the town needs adequate security. However, a new police station which has been built is not serving its purpose because it has virtually been abandoned and has become a selling point for food vendors.

The inhabitants, therefore, have to resort to the police at Asesewa, the district capital, many kilometres away in times of crisis relating to security in the area.

Untreated water 

Apart from that, there is also no good drinking water. Given that, residents and travellers rely on untreated water fetched from the Afram River.

While most of the residents rely on such raw water, which is the major challenge confronting the township, few others purchase sachet water brought in from distant places.

Realising the problem the inhabitants were facing with respect to potable water, a non-governmental organisation (NGO), Safe Water Network, sometime ago, provided a mechanised water system for the community, but that is not able to cater to the entire population of the town, which keeps on increasing each year.

This is why many of the dwellers have resorted to water drawn from the Afram River and sachet water.

The Dademantse of Akateng, Nene Laweh Terkper, told the Daily Graphic that many households do not enjoy potable water and depend on the Afram River all the time for untreated water.

Waterborne diseases 

He lamented that continuous reliance on the Afram River could cause many people, including children, to be infected with water-borne diseases such as bilharzia, diarrhoea and typhoid fever, among others.

Speaking to the lack of a parking lot for drivers, the Dadematse stated that it was very worrisome that the Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU) was using the backyard of houses and the middle of the road near the Apostolic Church as a parking lot.

That, Nene Terkper explained, was because there was no space available for that purpose.

"The assembly collects taxes and should be able to provide the town with a lorry station and a clinic to make life comfortable for the residents,” the Dadematse stated.

He also added that the Safe Water Network Project should be expanded to be able to satisfy the ever-increasing population of the town because currently, only a fraction of the population is enjoying the project.

Challenges 

A resident, Richmond Targbor, told the Daily Graphic that basic schools in the town were not in good condition and that the School Management Committees (SMC), as well as the Parent Teacher Associations (PTAs), were not making any effort to address the challenges facing the schools.

Some of the challenges, he indicated, include insufficient furniture and the lack of maintenance of the buildings which were put up many years ago.

A trader, Dora Teye, pointed out that although the Safe Water Network system was pumping potable water, many households were not connected and appealed to the NGO to go the extra mile by connecting every house to make it possible for all dwellers in the community to enjoy safe drinking water.

"I normally walk a distance to the pumping station to get potable water for my family, which shouldn't be the case because it is difficult and very challenging to carry water from that distance to my house," she said.

A fishmonger who is also a boat owner, Joyce Ayittah, was not happy about the water situation in the area and expressed worry about the current situation that had compelled residents to drink from the Afram River.

She said if the government and other relevant stakeholders remained silent over the issue, the people would continue to depend on the Afram River with its impurities and contamination.

Premix fuel 

On the issue of the premix fuel situation in the area, Ms Ayittah stated that the absence of the commodity had adversely affected the price of fish at the market.

She said most of the fishmongers who bought GH¢3,000 worth of fish, after selling them at places such as Accra, Tema, Ashaiman and other parts of the country, had to return with half of that amount because they sold at a loss.

Ms Ayittah indicated that the high cost of transportation had worsened the situation, saying they did not know exactly what to do to make life better for themselves.

Another fishmonger, Joyce Vede, also told the Daily Graphic that the absence of premix fuel for the fishermen to go fishing posed a great challenge since that was the only way they could have the required fish in the market.

A fisherman, Gabriel Ayittah, stated that Akateng remained a major fishing community that supplied large quantities of fish to various parts of the region and beyond.

He indicated that the lack of premix fuel had virtually rendered many fishermen and fishmongers redundant and made it very difficult for them to make ends meet.

Mr Ayittah stated that the high cost of fuel was affecting the work of fishermen, which had compelled them to credit the fuel.

He said the situation had made fishermen on the Afram River lay down their nets.

DCE

When contacted, the District Chief Executive for the Upper Manya Krobo District, Joe Sam, said he was aware of the numerous challenges facing the town.

The assembly, he said, was working assiduously to address such challenges to make life meaningful for the inhabitants.

"The government, through the assembly, is making frantic efforts to solve all the problems to improve the living standards of the people,” he said and appealed to the inhabitants to be patient and wait for the challenges to be resolved.

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