The Eastern Youth Development Association (EYDA), a prominent youth group in the Eastern Region, has officially thrown its weight behind the ongoing calls by chiefs and traditional leaders for the creation of a new region from the existing Eastern Region. The group believes this move is essential to accelerating development in the area.
The EYDA, which is dedicated to championing the development of the Eastern Region, argues that the creation of a new region will bring about significant socio-economic benefits, addressing longstanding challenges faced by residents. In a statement, the group outlined several key reasons supporting the push for a new region.
The youth group has petitioned political aspirants from various parties to support the creation of the new region, proposing a name and identifying sixteen districts to be included. The EYDA is committed to mobilizing support from all citizens and stakeholders to make this vision a reality.
Find below the full statement:
The Eastern Youth Development Association a youth group from the Eastern has officially announced its unwavering support to the call by the chiefs and traditional leaders for the creation of a new region from the Eastern Region.
As a Youth group with the main objective of championing the development of the region, we believe it is the right call to bring massive development to the region.
Several facts about the Eastern region support this call, these include;
1. Land Size. With a land size of Nineteen Thousand, Three Hundred and Twenty-Three square kilometres (19,323km2) representing (8.1%) of the total land size of Ghana.
2. Population. The region has a total population of 2,925,653 representing 8.9% of Ghana’s population with an estimated annual growth rate of 0.98% since 2010 per the 2021 Population and Housing Census making it the third most populous region in Ghana with an estimated population of 3 Million and above (3,012,512).
3. Contribution to the National Economy. Endowed with numerous natural resources, agriculture, tourism and human resources, the region’s contribution to the national cake is unarguable.
4. Difficulty in Receiving Certain Services. Due to the sparse nature of the various districts from the capital, it makes it somehow cumbersome when certain services are needed urgently for instance in healthcare service with the only referral health facility in the capital, in education and other services.
5. Very limited Development. It is certain the clear mismatch considering the size of and the population in the region with the development we see in the region, lack of quality healthcare, portable drinking water, and electricity as well as economic opportunities and jobs for the people.
As agents for development in the region, we strongly believe that the carving of a new region from the Eastern region will immensely contribute to the socio-economic development of the people in the new region and go a long way to help alleviate poverty by bridging the gap between the districts and the regional capital with additional development in infrastructure.
We are petitioning all the aspirants of the various political parties with a proposed name and sixteen (16) districts to cover the new region showing our full commitment to achieving this objective.
We, therefore, call on all citizens and stakeholders of the proposed new region to rally greatly behind this dream and make it a reality.
Development for all.
By: Ekow Annan/newsalertgh.com
