Wa, March 17, GNA - The Wa East District, one of the most deprived districts in the country, is developing a four-year medium term development plan to help provide the infrastructural needs of the district. The plan would seek to provide major projects such as office and residential accommodation for teachers and nurses as well as bungalows for heads of departments and workers.

Mr. Sumaila Awuntumah, Wa East Dis trict Coordinating Director, said this when he interacted with the media in Wa to explain the assembly's initiative to complement government's development efforts to improve infrastructure in the district.

He said the assembly was working steadily towards the provision of health, education and water and sanitation infrastructure in the area with education as its highest priority.

Mr Awuntumah said the government had provided 1.3 million Ghana cedis for the establishment of a senior high school at Funsi and gave the assurance that the assembly would build more school blocks to serve as feeding grounds for the senior high school.

The assembly would also provide financial support for students in teacher training colleges to complete their education and come out to improve teaching and learning in the schools. Mr. Awuntumah said efforts were being made to extend electricity to Funsi, the district capital, and some major communities to encourage the establishment of cottage industries to help generate revenue for the assembly.

He said the road network in the area would be improved while bridges would be given attention to make the district more accessible. The assembly would invest in the agricultural and tourism sectors as well as expand credit facilities to the youth to go into farming through the "Youth in Agriculture Programme" of the government.

Mr. Awuntumah said the assembly would encourage sustainable and environmentally best practices in all activities in the district. "We will maximize opportunities available under the "Greening Ghana Initiative" of the government to protect the environment", he said. He said the assembly had acquired large tracts of land for forestation projects to provide the people with alternative means of livelihoods and discourage them from charcoal burning.

Mr. Aminu Salifu, the District Chief Executive for Wa East, said the district was rich in gold deposits which could be developed into a vibrant mining economy for the country.

He said already, the mineral deposits in the district were being illegally mined and called on investors to invest in the sector. He said government was drawing up a plan to build a first class road that would link Bulenga to Funsi as well as the Upper West, Northern and Upper East regions.