Convert Bono dialect into written form – Ajoa Yeboah-Afari

Journalist and writer, Ms Ajoa Yeboah-Afari, has called for the conversion of the Bono dialect into a written form to promote the culture of the Bono people to serve as a guide and a sense of pride for the new generation.

“I believe that when the Bono language is in a written form, it will generate more pride in our young people and give them a sense of self-worth.

"It will also help to uplift the Bono identity,” she added.

Ms Yeboah-Afari said even though the Linguistics Department of the University of Ghana started a programme in the 1970s to develop written Bono, the exercise fizzled out, and, therefore, entreated chiefs and the political leadership in the area to pursue the matter.

The member of the Board of Directors of the Graphic Communications Group Limited (GCGL) made the call at a symposium in Sunyani last Wednesday as part of activities to commemorate the Diamond Jubilee anniversary of the erstwhile Brong Ahafo Region.

Tale of two promises

Making a presentation on the topic: “Reflecting on the Brong Ahafo story: A tale of two promises,” Ms Yeboah-Afari, who is a daughter of the first Regional Minister of the Brong Ahafo Region, Mr Kwame Boahene Yeboah-Afari, said the creation of the region was in fulfilment of Dr Nkrumah and the Convention People’s Party’s (CPP) manifesto during the 1956 electioneering.

The former Editor of the Ghanaian Times and President of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) said it was interesting that 60 years after the creation of the region, founded on the promise by a candidate during a general election campaign, another general election campaign dissolved the union, adding that “the history of Brong Ahafo, its evolution into three regions, is situated between two election promises.

“Significantly, while the word promise, usually in relation to elections often evokes the term broken promises, the two parties, the CPP in 1959 and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in 2019, did keep to this particular election promise.”

On the theme of the symposium, “Building the future on the achievements of the past,” the author of the column, “Native Daughter” in The Mirror, opined that future achievements of the Bono, Bono East and Ahafo regions would depend a lot on how the young generation were encouraged to take advantage of the available educational opportunities such as the Free Senior High School, because education was key to achieving their aspirations.

Ms Yeboah-Afari said even though the chiefs and people in the three regions were embarking on a new era of self-determination, there was the need to pay special attention to the Ahafo and Bono culture.

Bono East Region

Speaking on behalf of the Bono East Region on the topic: “Bono East, the centre of Ghana,” the Chairman of the Planning Committee of the 60th Anniversary and former Minister of State, Professor Christopher Ameyaw-Akumfi, said the region was rich in minerals and tourism resources which needed to be tapped for the benefit of the people.

He said with a land mass of 23,645.54 square kilometres, the region lacked adequate infrastructure and called on all 11 municipal and district assemblies to work hard for the accelerated development of the area.

Ahafo Region

For his part, a former Secretary of Youth and Sports, Dr Kwame Saarah-Mensah, who spoke on behalf of the Ahafo Region on the topic:

“Ahafo, the Land of Milk and Gold,” said besides the production of food and cash crops, the production of gold in the area was also contributing significantly to the economy of the country.

He said through the use of funds set aside for the implementation of corporate social responsibility programmes of Newmont Goldcorps, a lot of development projects were being undertaken in the area and expressed the hope that the creation of the region would assist in addressing the lack of adequate social amenities.

He called on people in the three regions to view the splitting of the Brong Ahafo Region in a positive light so that together, they can harness the potential in the three regions for growth.

Significance

The Omanhene of the Yeji Traditional Area, Pimampim Yaw Kagbrese, who is also the President of the Brong Ahafo Regional House of Chiefs, said the anniversary was worth celebrating to reflect on past challenges and achievements to chart a better path into the future.