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Kpandai, Ghana – The Kpandai-Salaga road is in life-risking state.On plying it, either from Salaga to Kpandai or otherwise, one can only be praying to reach his/her destination safely. Time is of no essence.
The road which has been worn out to sandy state—no more gravel–emanates breath-choking dust to affect both motorist and communities along it, and during rainy season, cars have to ‘swim’ across.
According to the Kpandai District Chief Executive (DCE), Emmanuel Kofi Tatablata, the district would be cut off from the rest of the Northern Region if nothing was done to improve the road before the next rainy season.
He said it would be an embarrassment to government if they fail to rehabilitate the road because the government used it as part of its campaign against the past government.
Mr Tatablata said: “Kpandai needs the road than Salaga because we need to pass through there to our regional capital,” referring to Tamale.
The road serves as the district’s main link to the rest of the Northern Region, yet has been left since its colonial days to deteriorate to its current live endangering state.
Across the whole district, there is no single tarred road, everywhere is sand and dust, and during rainy season it is all muddy and water. Cars get stuck, leaving passengers stranded.
A commercial bus uses the road once a day. And once you miss the early morning wretched Benz bus from Kpandai to Salaga, getting another is by five over hundred chance.
The old bus is usually overloaded with more passengers sitting on its rooftop for the next three hours of hell for the otherwise thirty minutes journey if the road was in good shape.
Kpandai District no doubt has the potential to develop faster with its enviable level of yam production for the country. But bad roads has led to deprivation and poverty.
The bad state of the roads in the area including those linking the catchment farming communities is taking a huge toll on farming business. Farmers are ‘crying’ over low price offers for their yams because it takes daring drivers and buyers to venture into certain parts of the area during the harvest.
Some of the farmers say they face huge post-harvest losses on one hand and poor market for their produce on the other.
From in-depth group discussions, some of the farmers analysed that it normally cost them Ghc2,500.00 on the average to cultivate or to harvest an acre of yam. And an acre of yam could barely produce three hundred tubers.
But last year 110 tubers were sold below Ghc100.00 at the Kpandai market and catchment communities. Apparently, an acre of Ghc2,500.00 as production cost yielded below Ghc300.00 as market price —highly outrageous loss.
Source: bridgenewsgh.com
