Upper West Region

The Upper West Region of Ghana is located in the north-western corner of Ghana and is bordered by Upper East region to the east, Northern region to the south, and Burkina Faso to the west and north. The Upper West regional capital and largest settlement is Wa. Upper West is the youngest region, created in Ghana by the then Head of State, Flight-Lieutenant Jerry Rawlings in 1983 under the Provisional National Defense Council (PNDC). The area was carved out of the former Upper Region, which is now the Upper East Region.

Upper West Region
Region
Région du Haut Ghana occidental
Location of Upper West Region in Ghana
CountryGhana
CapitalWa
Districts11
Government
 • Regional MinisterHafiz Bin Salih[1]
Area
 • Total18,476 km2 (7,134 sq mi)
Area rankRanked 7th
Population
 (2019)[3]
 • Total849,123
 • RankRanked 10th
 • Density46/km2 (120/sq mi)
GDP (PPP)
 • Year2013
 • Per capita$5,150
GDP (Nominal)
 • Year2013
 • Per capita$2,500
Time zoneGMT
Area code(s)039
ISO 3166 codeGH-UW
HDI (2017)0.518[4]
low · 9th

Geography and climate

Location and size

The Upper West Region is one of the 16 regions of Ghana. It is located at the North Western corner of Ghana with latitude 9.8°- 11.O° North and longitude 1.6°- 3.0 West, bounded to Burkina Faso to the North. It covers a geographical area of 18,476 square kilometers, representing 12.7% of the total land area of Ghana. The northern Ghana-Burkina Faso is bordered on the east by the Upper East region and Northern regions, on the south by the Northern region, on the west by western Ghana-Burkina Faso, and the Upper West region on the north. It is the seventh largest region in Ghana in total area, and it is made up of 11 districts. By virtue of its location, the Upper West Region has the potential for international and inter-regional trade and other bi-lateral relations, but the overspill of criminal activities and disaster, such as bush fires, diseases and pestilence, armed robbery etc., from the region's neighbors also pose a threat.[5]

Tourism

The Wechiau Hippopotamus Sanctuary is located southwest of Wa, along the Black Volta River in the Wa West District. The Gwollu Wall in the Sissala District serves as the hometown of one of Ghana's past presidents - Dr. Hilla Limann.[6]

Cuisine

A distinctive feature of the Upper West region's culture is the brewing of pito (pronounced PEE-toe), a sweet, mildly alcoholic beverage derived from sorghum (Sorghum spp.). Pito is sold by the brewers in open air bars and drunk from calabashes.

Another distinctive meal in the upper west region is sawu (touzafe T Z)

Economy

The major economic activity of the Upper West Region is agriculture. Crops grown include corn, millet, peanuts, okra, shea tree, and rice. Sheep, goats, chickens, pigs and guinea fowl are raised for meat and eggs. Because the region's dry season is long, extending roughly from October to May, many people leave the region to work in the southern part of Ghana for at least part of the year.

Sports

Schools
Main article: Education in Ghana

Districts
Districts of the Upper West Region

The Upper West Region of Ghana contains 11 districts consisting of 1 municipal and 10 ordinary districts as follows:[7]

Districts in Upper West Region
# District Capital Population
1 Daffiama Bussie Issa Issa
2 Jirapa/Lambussie Jirapa
3 Lambussie Karni Lambussie
4 Lawra Lawra
5 Nadowli Nadowli
6 Nandom Nandom
7 Sissala East Tumu
8 Sissala West Gwollu
9 Wa East Funsi
10 Wa Municipal Wa
11 Wa West Wechiau
Total

Notable natives of Upper West Region

Prominent and famous citizens of Upper West Region include

Festivals of the Upper West Region[8]
  • Gologo/Golib Festival
  • Samanpiid Festival
  • Fao Festival
  • Kuure Festival
  • Adaakoya Festival
  • Feok Festival
  • Boaram Festival
  • Tengana Festival
  • Damba Festival
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References
  1. http://www.ghana.gov.gh/index.php/governance/regional-ministers
  2. "Upper West Region". GhanaDistricts.com. Retrieved 2009-11-20.
  3. "Upper West Region – Population" (PDF). statsghana.gov.gh. Retrieved 2013-01-20.
  4. "Sub-national HDI - Area Database - Global Data Lab". hdi.globaldatalab.org. Retrieved 2018-09-13.
  5. GOG(MLGRD)
  6. ghanadistricts.com
  7. "Upper West". GhanaDistricts.com. Archived from the original on 18 January 2013. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
  8. Editor (2016-02-24). "Upper West Region". touringghana.com. Retrieved 2020-01-28.CS1 maint: extra text: authors list (link)

Sources

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