Madam Justina Owusu-Banahene, the Bono Regional Minister has given the assurance that the government would actively engage traditional authorities in national development processes.

As the embodiment of the people, Madam Owusu-Banahene noted development could not progress as expected if chiefs and queens were neglected, saying her administration would continue to seek advice from traditional rulers to build a better society.

The Regional Minister said this when she paid a courtesy call on Barimah Kumi Acheaw II, the Chief of Abesim on Wednesday.

Some supporters of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), friends, relations and well-wishers, and the various Municipal and District Chief Executives in the region gave the Minister a rousing welcome in the town when returning from Accra, after successfully going through her ministerial vetting.

She also paid similar calls and interacted with the Sunyani Traditional Council, and the Chiefs of Atronie and told them her administration could not do much without them and rallied their assistance and cooperation to motivate her to work hard to bring the development of the region to the next level.

The Bono region, Mad Owusu-Banahene observed, had huge economic potentials that could be harnessed and tapped to push the development of the region forward.

She underlined the need for the people to forge ahead in unity, and help to identify and tackle pertinent development challenges confronting the region, and promised to operate an open-door policy to receive suggestions and constructive criticism from the various political divide and the entire populace.

On their part, the chiefs congratulated the regional minister for her appointment, and promised to support her to achieve her vision for the region.

Barimah Acheaw II expressed the hope that everybody in the region would support the regional minister and her administration to succeed.