Geographical Setting
The Upper Region was carved out of the erstwhile Northern Territories in July 1960 for easy administration and for developmental reasons. In 1983, it was further divided into the Upper West and East Regions as part of government’s decentralization programme.
The region covers an area of 8.84 sq kilometers, representing about 3% of the total landmass of the country. It is boarded in the north by Burkina Faso, in the east by the Republic of Togo and the West and South by the Upper West and Northern Regions respectively.
schools like Navrongo Secondary School built in 1960, Bolgatanga Secondary, Bawku Secondary, and Notre Dame Seminary Secondary, with the latter built by the Catholic Church. Perhaps the oldest Girls’ secondary school in northern Ghana is the Bolgatanga Girls School. All these institutions except Notre Dame Seminary Secondary School were built by government from the 1960s onwards. Before then, education was mainly in the hands of the White Missionaries who arrived in the region from the then Upper Volta. There are also technical schools and a polytechnic. The largest institution in the region is the Navrongo campus of University for Development Studies (UDS).
Health
Government, in collaboration with some Churches has established a number of health institutions in the Upper East Region. These include the Bolgatanga regional Hospital among others. The Presbyterian Church has also built a hospital in Bawku and has mobile vans for outreach services in surrounding areas and other parts of the region. The Catholic Church is also doing well in this direction. The most popular perhaps most efficient clinic in the region is the Wiaga clinic which was built by the Catholic White Fathers. There are also health centres in other parts of the region. There are also health centres in other parts of the region. The number of the health infrastructure notwithstanding, most people in the region rely on quack doctors and traditional medincine due to the high cost involved in accessing orthodox medicine and the generally low incomes of the population.
Agriculture
The main irrigation infrastructures in the region are the Vea and Tono Irrigation Projects in Vea and Tono respectively, built in the 1970s. These support the region’s farmers in rice production, tomato and soyabean, especially during the dry season. There are also a number of dug-out dams in many villages which also support dry season farming, though not adequate.
The Upper East Region, then Upper Region was the first region in the north to benefit from the establishment factories all over the country. The first factory was a meat factory in Bolgatanga, which was meant to be fed mainly by the large number of cattle produced in the region, as well as those from neighbouring Burkina Faso. It was also to boost animal rearing by the farmers in the region. There is also the Kpwalugu Tomato Factory which was also to serve as a boost to tomato production in the irrigation areas in the region. Sadly, however, these have become defunct.
All the district capitals have been connected to the national electricity grid and can serve as a boost to investment.
Despite these infrastructures, the region is the poorest in the country, especially in food production. Many people cannot afford the three-square meals in a day. Majority of families just manage to make a living out of their meager incomes. Most of which are less than $370 a year.
Rural Economy
Like the other parts of northern Ghana, the people of the Upper East Region are predominantly peasant farmers. Much of the farming is done in the short rainy season with the long dry season as a period of preparation towards farming in the wet season.
The region is perhaps more blessed than the Northern and Upper West Regions in terms of irrigation projects. These are the Tono and Vea Irrigation projects. These is also a significant number of dug out dams to support dry season farming.
These, however are concentrated in a few communities and are not enough.
Around Bolgatanga, the regional capital and surrounding areas, baskets, straw hats, straw bags, smocks, and other leather materials constitute a major source of income for a significant number of people in these areas. Blacksmithing is also another activity in many areas of the region. Much of the blacksmithing is the traditional type. They produce hoes, axes, ploughs, donkey carts, beds, etc for sale. Lack of capital to purchase equipment has been a major problem in this business.
Dressmaking, carpentry and masonry activities are quite buoyant. There are a number of institutions which have encouraged this kind of apprenticeships. Some of these are: the women’s Training Institutions in Navrongo, Bolga and Bawku, the technical schools in the region and a youth training centre in Sandema. There are still a few others scattered in other parts of the region. The Catholic Church in Navrongo has opened a women’s training institute where needle work and dressmaking are the main vocational activities taught. This is the St. Benedict Vocational Institute.
Culture and Religion
Christianity, Islam and traditional beliefs are the predominant religions. Traditional life and beliefs, like elsewhere in Ghana, are more prevalent in the rural areas. Traditional beliefs and traditional medicine are so intricately linked such that the large numbers of people who patronize the services of herbalists tend to believe in traditional religion whether such people live in the rural or urban areas. The main reason for this, is the high cost of drugs and hospital fees, and the poverty levels of the people.
Notable festivals are the Feok for the Builsas, Fao for the Kassenas, Bugum for the Kusasi and Mamprusi and Samanpiid for the Kusasi. These are colourful festivals and their celebrations attract a lot of visitiors. The festivals are also used by the people to solicit government support for development.
Chieftaincy
Chieftaincy is a respected institution in the region and on a number of occasions, has led to clashes between people especially in the Bawku areas between the Kusasis and Mamprusis
Family and Kinship
Inheritance is patrilineal. Marriage is generally monogamous especially among the majority Christian population, but polygamous among some Muslims traditional.
There are large family sizes due to the extended family system practiced in the area. The family organization, like other parts of the north, reflects male dominance and consequently the relatively low status of women in region.
Incidence of Poverty
In the Upper East Region, poverty is endemic. Almost 9 out of 10 citizens in the region are poor. This compares unfavorably with southern regions. The Central region has 1 out of 2 people who are poor and in Greater Accra region it is 1 out of 10 people who are poor.
In many areas of the Upper East Region, especially the rural areas, the situation of the poorest has worsened and inequality has increased.
Besides its geographical pattern, poverty among households engaged in different economic activities is considerable. While in the south, export farmers have enjoyed the greatest gains in their standard of living, food farmers who, incidentally, form the greatest percentage in the Upper East Region, have experienced the least gains.
The poverty in the region can be described as rural, and it is associated with landlessness mainly due to population pressure, irregular source of incomes, lack of access to facilities and amenities. These facilities, such as schools, roads, pipe-borne water, hospitals etc are supposed to be of standard and available to everybody but are either concentrated in the towns or are lacking in large rural areas. The cost of accessing them is unaffordable.
The destruction of nature, the forest, land, animals, rivers, lakes and environmental degradation in general perpetuates poverty. This is true of the Upper East as almost all the forests are destroyed by human beings for survival.