Hundreds of farmers in the Nanton District in the Northern Region are on the brink of losing their harvests, as a collapsed bridge has cut off farming communities from major markets.
The Batangyili–Nanton road, which connects Batangyili, Sandu, Nanton Kurugu, Neriguyili and several other food-producing communities, has become a nightmare for residents and farmers.
Once a vital route for transporting maize, yams, groundnuts and vegetables to markets in Nanton and Savelugu, the road is filled with deep potholes, gullies and a broken bridge that floods have repeatedly washed away.
For many months, the farmers have been stranded and unable to transport maize, yams and other produce to the Nanton and Savelugu markets.
Many have been forced to use bicycles to carry small loads, while others are counting heavy losses as their produce goes bad on farms.
Frustration
A maize farmer, Fuseini Baba, told the Daily Graphic that the poor condition of the road is taking a toll on their lives.
The road linking Sandu, Nanton Kurugu and Neriguyili Batangyili to the district capital is in a deplorable state
“I want to start harvesting my maize, but I don’t know how to bring it home because even a tricycle cannot use the road,” he lamented.
Another farmer, Alhassan Abdulai, said last year residents had to manually carry loads across the broken section of the bridge, adding, "we don’t know when this road will be properly fixed.
Some of our produce is already going bad."
Beyond that, the poor road network has resulted in children dropping out of school to help parents carry farm produce in small loads.
Residents fixing portions of the deplorable road with stones
Some farmers have also been compelled to sell their crops cheaply within their villages, losing income they could have earned from larger markets.
Ripple effect
The Assembly Member for the Batangyili Electoral Area, Abdulai Osman Tiyuuniba, said the situation was crippling livelihoods.
“The agriculture sector is the backbone of this district, but the poor condition of this road is crippling farmers’ incomes, discouraging traders and deterring investors who might have supported agribusiness,” he said.
He said local traders were unwilling to risk their vehicles on the road, while transport costs had skyrocketed for those who still attempted to navigate the damaged stretch.
The ripple effect, he said, was a slowdown in economic activity that had worsened poverty in the area.
Some residents patching portions of the road to ease the situation
He indicated that he had filed complaints with the assembly for the past two years, yet no steps had been taken to address the situation.
DCE
When contacted, the District Chief Executive (DCE) for Nanton, Rosina Zanabu Abdul Rahaman, admitted that poor roads remained one of the district's most daunting challenges.
She said, “several farming communities have been cut off. It is devastating.
Farmers cannot bring home their produce, hindering agricultural activities."
She added that she had personally toured some of the affected communities after her appointment and confirmed the severity of the road crisis.
“We in the district are far behind in development projects, especially roads.
“We are appealing to the Ministry of Roads and Highways to intervene urgently and provide durable bridges and road infrastructure,” she appealed.
