Go out and seek development partners – Chiefs advised
A traditional ruler in the Upper West Region has appealed to chiefs in the area to identify the development needs of their communities and work with government to achieve them.
He said they should be more active in the search for development partners to help improve on the living conditions of the people.
Guli Naa, Naa Seidu Braimah said this during the enskinment of Naa Seidu Nawologime as a divisional chief for the people of Bulenga in the Wa East District under the Wa Paramountcy.
He said it was only through such partnership and collaboration that the people and government would realise the importance of the chieftaincy institution and give it the needed attention and recognition.
Naa Braimah, who is also a Council of State Member, said development partners usually would not go about knocking at people’s doors to offer support but would rather wait for them to come and asked for the type of support they needed.
He said the days of chiefs sitting down and receiving courtesies and pleasantries were over, pointing out that time had come for them to identify problems, package them well and go all out to look for the support from development partners.
“What is more important now is for us to work together with government and other development partners to change the poor conditions in education, health, agriculture and social challenges of their people”, Naa Braimah said.
Naa Braimah said the region was considered to be the poorest in the country and more efforts must therefore be put in place to develop it to catch up with the rest and chiefs must not be left out in that effort to help break the poverty chain.
He noted that government’s “Better Ghana” agenda concept would not achieve the much needed results if majority of the citizenry were illiterates and did not know what goes around them.
The Council of State Member called for affirmative action on the part of chiefs to help improve education by encouraging their people to send their children to school and support them to complete their basic education.
They should also pay visits to schools in their communities to monitor teaching and learning in those schools and as well find incentive packages for teachers to help them do their best.
Naa Sohimwineye Danah Gore II, President of the Upper West Regional House of Chiefs, appealed to government to open more teacher training colleges to turn out more qualified teachers to man schools in the rural areas enhance performance at the basic education level.
He said the lives of many children have been jeopardized due to the inadequate qualified teachers to handle them to pass the Basic Education Certificate Examination, resulting in many of them taking up to some social vices.
Alhaji Issahaque Salia, Upper West Regional Minister who graced the occasion, appealed to Naa Nawologime to lead his people with respect and love for all so that they could also support him to achieve his vision.
Naa Nawologime who was known in his private life as Abdulai Seidu is 58 years old and he works at the Ghana Highway Authority as Works Foreman.
He promised to work hard with development partners to help improve education, health and agriculture.
Source: GNA