GHANA – Top International Engineering Cooperation (TIEC) has completed the rehabilitation of the Tono Irrigation Dam in the Kassena-Nankana Municipality, Upper East Region of Ghana.
The completion of the rehabilitation process has been announced by Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo on 30 March 2022 during his State of the Nation address.
The Chinese company Top International Engineering Cooperation (TIEC) implemented the irrigation project over a period of 36 months, with a budget of US$36 million.
The Ghanaian government obtained the funds from several funding partners, including the World Bank and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
The work carried out by TIEC consisted of the reconstruction of the retaining walls, irrigation canals, dam floor, laterals, and other parts of the structure built-in 1975. The spillway of the water reservoir has also been rehabilitated.
According to the President of the Republic of Ghana, Nana Akufo-Addo, the re-commissioning of the Tono Dam (4km long) will make water available for the irrigation of 2,490 hectares of rice fields and vegetable plantations in the communities of Kassena-Nankana and Builsa.
An intake from the Tono multi-purpose dam will also supply the new drinking water plant in the Ghanaian city.
The plant built at Tono will be capable of treating 20,500 m3 of water per day. The Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) will operate the future plant which will serve the towns of Navrongo, Paga, Zuarungu, Bolgatanga, and surrounding communities.
Nana Akufo-Addo said the rehabilitation of the Tono Irrigation Dam is part of the Ghana Commercial Agricultural Project (GCAP) which has so far recorded 13,190 hectares of additional irrigable land through the rehabilitation of the Tono, Kpong Left Bank, and Kpong irrigation schemes for rice and vegetables.
“Among the immediate benefits of the project is an increase in rice yield from 4.5 to 5.5 tonnes per hectare, which has led to increased production and farm income,” said the Ghanaian president.
“Some 14,264 smallholder farmers have benefited directly, creating 40,000 jobs in several value chain activities generated by the irrigation projects.”
The dam will boost the agricultural sector that offer opportunities for greater livelihoods security and poverty reduction in northern Ghana where climatic conditions do not allow for an all-year-around agricultural production.
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