Bolgatanga, July 12, GNA - The Upper East Regional Minister, Mr Boniface Gambilla on Tuesday said plans were far advanced by the Regional Co-ordinating Council to construct students' hostels in the major tertiary institutions in the Region.

The Minister who disclosed this in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in Bolgatanga stressed that this would help alleviate the burden of many students in the region who cannot afford to pay their academic user fees nor their accommodation fees.

The Minister attributed this to the high poverty level in the Region.

Mr Gambilla noted that he has a lot of vision for the Region and emphasised that his outfit was already embarking upon visits to the various Regions of the country to encourage citizens of the Region to contribute their quota to the development of the Region. He called on citizens of the Region who were living outside the Region to help develop the area, saying, "you are development partners of the Region".

Mr Gambilla further hinted that the Regional Co-ordinating Council would soon set up a secretariat in the national capital, Accra to co-ordinate and facilitate the developmental needs of the Region. The Regional Minister lamented over the fact that the Region lacked foodstuffs, pointing out that the RCC in collaboration with the Region's Ministry of Food and Agriculture were fashioning out strategies for farmers in the Region to enable them to crop thrice in a year on the banks of rivers which cut across the White Volta, stressing, "the project would start soon".

He added that the RCC would also liase with financial institutions and other institutions to provide loans and technical assistance to the farmers in the Region to boost agricultural production. This, he noted, would help curb starvation and sustain the livelihood of the people.

The Minister indicated that his outfit would also empower the marginalized people in the Region who were engaged in small-scale businesses such as the crafts and the mining industries logistically and financially. This, he noted would alleviate poverty in the region and prevent migration of the people to the south in search of menial jobs.