KONONGO, capital of the Asante Akyem North Municipality, is one community in the Ashanti Region which is fast expanding in terms of size and population growth.
The community, like Kumasi, is not only strategically located in the region, but it is also endowed with natural resources, and therefore attracts people from diverse backgrounds, many of whom have made it their permanent residential area.
Apart from the gold deposits which attract a section of the youth from the surrounding communities to Konongo daily, commercial activities, as well as small and medium-scale industries always entice people from different parts of the country to the community.
The emergence of radio stations in the country has also added value to the expansion of Konongo as Kings and Virgin, the two prominent radio stations deeply rooted in the community, do not only educate, entertain and inform the residents on issues that promote their interests, but also market their products extensively, making it possible for them to get value for their items.
Located on the Kumasi-Accra highway, Konongo, which has merged with Odumase and is regarded as a twin community, has fairly its share of social amenities in the areas of education, health, water, as well as entertainment.
In terms of education, the Konongo-Odumase Senior High School (KOSS) which was established in 1953 with Mr Spio Garbrah as its first headmaster, is one institution that has succeeded in developing the potential of the youth.
The school has not only produced some renowned and shrewd politicians in the country, but has also unearthed many economists, educationists, agriculturists, engineers and medical officers who are making meaningful contributions towards sustainable socio-economic development in the country in diverse ways.
The rapid population growth of Konongo in particular and Odumase in general has, however, made it impossible for KOSS to absorb all final -year students from the various public and private junior high schools (JHSs) in the community.
The result is that many JHS graduates who are unable to gain admission to KOSS, yearly find themselves in the street hawking and dog chain selling business while others relocate to Kumasi or Accra to do menial jobs at great risk.
With regard to health, the Konongo Hospital, which has only one medical officer with a few nurses, is struggling to cope with the healthcare needs of the hundreds of patients who flock to the facility daily to access quality healthcare services.
The hospital, which was built more than 50 years ago as a clinic with a capacity to take only 24 male and female patients, has never seen any expansion.
Because of the peculiar problems at the Konongo Hospital in terms of inadequate facilities and infrastructure, children on admission mix with adults in the same ward.
With inadequate medical staff and facilities to enhance quality delivery of health care services, many emergencies are therefore referred to the Komfo Anokye Teaching and Agogo Presbyterian Hospitals.
However, because of the distance and sometimes transportation problems, patients, especially accident victims and women in labour, lose their lives before they reach the referral facilities.
Water, an essential basic necessity, has always been in short supply in the Konongo Municipality.
Students and residents always compete for water daily as the dam built to supply water for the increasing population cannot meet the demand.
The perennial water problem in the community affects academic performance at KOSS.
The mechanised borehole constructed to provide water for the school’s community is unable to produce enough for the ever growing student population. The situation compels the students to spend their precious time searching for water every day.
In terms of security, Konongo has been elevated to a divisional status, meaning the scope of police operations has been expanded. The division stretches from Dadiese in the Asante Akyem South District to Ejisu-Juaben, as far as Bomfa and Akyiase.
Inadequate accommodation for the police, however, makes it difficult for the police personnel to accept postings to most parts of the division, thus undermining effective and efficient policing.
Commenting on the infrastructure challenges in the Konongo Municipality, the chief of the community, Nana Batafo Akyampong Nti, told the Daily Graphic that education was the priority of the Konongo Traditional Council.
In this direction, the council has provided a 30-acre land for the development of infrastructure at the Wesley Methodist Day Senior High School, which was inaugurated about three years ago.
This is to complement the efforts of KOSS in developing the potential of the youth.
Nana Nti said the “school needs infrastructure such as a well-stocked library, a science laboratory, adequate classrooms and a hall to enhance quality teaching and learning”.
He explained that since the KOSS was the only second-cycle educational institution with adequate infrastructure within the Konongo Municipality, there was pressure on the school for new intake at the beginning of every academic year. This has made it necessary to develop the Wesley Methodist Day School. To reduce the pressure on health, Nana Nti said “since the Konongo Traditional Council (KTC) is also conscious of the health care needs of residents, we have liaised with the government to develop health facilities to merit the municipal status”.
“Quality healthcare service delivery is one of our biggest headaches so the KTC has released a 40-acre land for the construction of a new hospital at Konongo.”
The government has already awarded the project on contract but work is yet to begin.
Nana Nti, therefore, appealed to the government to expedite action on the project for residents in the Konongo Municipality to enjoy quality health care service delivery”.
He gave the assurance that the community would offer communal labour on the project as soon as it took off to ensure its early completion.
Nana Nti said the dam that supplied water to the municipality was too small and therefore was unable to produce sufficient water to meet the needs of residents. He, therefore, appealed to the government to build a bigger dam to address the perennial water shortage in the municipality, since the current one was too small.
The Konongo chief commended police personnel in the municipality for their commitment to provide security for the residents in spite of the limited facilities at their disposal.
“In 1994, the KTC released a 20-acre land to the police for the construction of a police barracks to ease their accommodation problems but the land is still lying fallow while some of the personnel posted here sleep at the charge office,” he noted with concern.
“With Konongo now elevated to a municipality status, we need more policemen to provide security for law-abiding residents to concentrate on their economic ventures peacefully. My humble appeal to the Interior Minister is to construct police barracks at Konongo to entice more personnel to accept posting here,” Nana Nti stressed.
He said it was also important for the sector ministry to increase the fleet of vehicles and other logistics of the police within the Konongo Municipality to enhance efficient and effective policing as the current vehicles and logistics for the divisional police command were woefully inadequate for the police to effectively fight crime.
Nana Batafo Akyampong Nti said lack of sports infrastructure was another problem the municipality faced.
He said Konongo had produced former national soccer stars like Kalala, Essuman and Adarkwa, “so developing the Konongo Sports Stadium would enable the youth to develop their potential and contribute to sports development in the country”.
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