Prioritise actions to check migration from northern Ghana!!

 Based on a study they have undertaken, some researchers have con­cluded that about 2.6 million people living in the country’s northern regions are likely to migrate down south by 2050 if the current temperature trends in the north persist.

The Ghanaian Times does not find the researchers’ projection strange or shocking; rather from its own observation of north-south migration in the country, it can say the figure could be higher within the projected 25- year period.

Already the harsh condi­tions in the north, occasioned by both natural causes like climate change; and the lack of socio-economic development in the area, have forced many peo­ple from the north to migrate down south over the years.

The researchers are recom­mending strategies that can ameliorate the envisaged prob­lems so that the people in the north can adapt to the condi­tions that may arise in the hope that the projected migrations would not take place.

For instance, looking at the linkages between climate change, migration, and social transformation, they recom­mend that urban planning policies should incorporate the rising inflow of climate migrants and encourage the cultivation of climate-resilient crops such as maize, millet, sorghum, and rice.

This recommendation must not be ignored but it should be noted that the success of it and other recommendations would greatly depend on the actions the government would take now to address the problems militating against easy living in the north and to stem the ones likely to emerge to worsen the situation.

The ‘1 District 1 Dam’ initiative introduced by the Akufo-Addo administration, for instance, was a good adaptive strategy but can now be de­scribed as a fiasco because the dams were not well construct­ed to withstand high climatic temperatures.

The people complained they easily dried up and so could not be used for the purpose for which they were constructed – all-year-round farming – which could have helped reduce north-south migration to some extent.

The ‘1 District 1 Dam’ is one initiative the current govern­ment must probe because it ap­pears politicians especially and other public officials in general do not care so much about the problems affecting the lives of the people living in the north­ern part of the country; rather they choose to profit from the problems.

This must be stopped once and for all by seeking account­ability from all projects planned at least in the country’s Fourth Republic to bring some joy to the people living in the north that have so far failed.

The truth is that even though people strive for progress and prosperity, life generally is about survival first and foremost.

Therefore, if the basic essence of life – survival – is threatened, naturally, people would move where, at least, survival is possible.

This is the situation of the people who live in the northern part of the country, and so they would prefer to abandon their fathers’ land, not because they do not like it but because the place is not getting the push for its comforts.

Meanwhile, it is an area that boasts vast arable land that presents itself as a great food basket that can support the country’s food security.

Thus, actions to address the problems in the north should be a national priority.