The communities include Ayone Doone, Kunkua Doone, Gowrie Tingre, Gowrie Nayire, Gowrie Dabotin, Azenko Doone, Ayakariken, Adirigo Doone and Aviire Doone.

 Dr Mohammed Amin Adam, the Deputy Minister of Energy pressed the button at Gambrongo, in the Bongo District, on Tuesday, for the nine communities to be connected to the national grid.

Dr Adam said the importance of electricity to national development, especially in reducing poverty in the rural areas could not be overemphasized hence the government was committed to ensuring that electricity got to every corner of the country.

 About 457 communities in the Upper East Region have been earmarked to get connected to electricity through the Rural Electrification Programme and the Bongo District has only about 47 communities of which nine have been completed and commissioned. 

He said the current state of distributing electricity across the regions was not acceptable as the southern part had most of their communities being connected to electricity while access to electricity in the northern part of the country was very low.

 To attain universal access to electricity about 10 new contracts would be signed by government regarding access to electricity in the three regions of the north in order to enable government flagship programmes succeed and create jobs, he said.

“We believe that without electricity there cannot be accelerated development. Development goes with electricity. This government wants to carry out the One District One Factory programme but without electricity, it cannot succeed because the factories need electricity to work.

“Apart from this we are doing free Senior High School programme and we want to extend electricity to all communities so that our children, in their classroom, would be able to make use of computers and the internet because the internet has so much knowledge and information to help the children in their academic work,” Dr Adam added.

The Deputy Minister explained that access to electricity would further create jobs for the youth including wilders, hairdressers, barbers, mechanics and for refrigeration, “and even for purposes of providing quality healthcare, we need electricity, we need to be able to conserve our medicines and drugs given to our hospitals and health centres.”

Mr Peter Ayinbisa Ayamga, the District Chief Executive (DCE) for Bongo, commended both previous and present governments for implementing the rural electrification programme and said governance was all about continuity.

He reiterated his commitment to lobbying for all other communities within the District that were not connected to get connected and have access to electricity.

The DCE admonished the youth to take advantage of the project by venturing into profitable businesses that would empower them economically and create jobs for others.

The Deputy Minister was accompanied by Mr Lawrence Apaalse, the Chief Director at the Ministry of Energy and Petroleum.