Navrongo (UE), April 12, GNA - People living around the Tono Irrigation dam near Navrongo on Wednesday expressed concern about the possibility of their communities getting flooded at the onset of rains due to the dilapidated nature of the canals of the dam.

They said the slabs that were used for the plastering of the canals were falling off and the water could not be controlled, hence their fear that their homes could be washed off if the canals were not repaired. The residents made the complaint at the Peoples Assembly forum at Navrongo in the Kassena Nankana district.

Reacting to the complaint, Alhaji Issa Bukari, Director of the Irrigation Company of the Upper Region (ICOUR), said the Tono Irrigation scheme was the largest in the country and had a 42-kilometer stretch of canals that had not been rehabilitated since the facility was built in the 1970s.

He confirmed that the canals were in poor shape and appealed to the government to give support, saying that an estimated 27 billion cedis was needed for the purpose.

Residents of Navrongo Central at the forum complained of poor sanitation and irregular supply of water in the town. Mr. Emmanuel Chegeweh, District Chief Executive, in an address said the district was taking measures to help improve education and healthcare delivery for the people.

He said so far the Assembly was sponsoring 308 teacher trainees, 44 community health nurse trainees, 69 physically challenged students and seven females in the University.

On finance, Mr. Chegeweh regretted that the assembly made only 485,297,894 cedis, representing 41 per cent of the projected internally generated revenue of 1.1billion cedis for 2005, and that the District had also been disappointed by most of its donor partners.