By Peter Agengre
The Executive Director for Northern Patriots in Research and Advocacy (NORPRA) in the Upper East Region, Bismark Ayorogo, has served notice to the President’s ORAL Team to consider investigating the 1V1D projects that were executed in the northern part of the country. He has expressed his readiness to offer any kind of support to the team to should they request for same.
A research conducted by NORPRA in 2024 disclosed that dams constructed under the One Village One Dam (1V1D) initiative have dried up and are not serving the purpose for which they were initiated. The Coalition of Northern Ghana Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), led by the Northern Patriots in Research and Advocacy (NORPRA) at a meeting in Tamale called on the then government to consider the failures of the dams as a lesson to guide a review of the initiative to improve livelihoods of citizens.
Speaking exclusively to GBCNews in Bolgatanga, Mr. Ayorogo expressed disappointment at the previous government for the poor handling of the dams meant for dry season irrigation.
“Research has shown that small earth dams really support livelihood in northern Ghana. Regrettably, under President Akuffo Addo, when we went round the over four hundred one village one dams, we could not see a single dam contributing to reducing poverty and increasing agricultural productivity and employment as envisaged by that policy.” Mr. Ayorogo condemned.
Mr. Ayorogo says he is ever ready to provide documents necessary for the ORAL Team to investigate the 1V1D projects.
“For NORPRA, what the previous government did was just about taking resources and sharing it among family and friends. The time that the people need the dams for dry season farming, that’s the time dams are dried up. Meanwhile small earth dams constructed in the northern part of the country in previous regimes are still containing water. So I think that the ORAL Team need to invite the officials who supervised the projects for questioning. And we have documents to all the contractors who worked on the 1V1D. We need to find out.” Mr. Ayorogo pleaded.
