Overview

Saboba district is located in the eastern corridor of northern Ghana. It lies in the North – Eastern part of the Northern Region and it is bordered by the Chereponi district to the north, the Oti River to the east, which also serves as the international boundary between Ghana and the Republic of Togo, Gushegu district to North West, Yendi district southwest west and Tatale/Sangule district to the south. Saboba is the district capital town.

Socio-Economic characteristics

The district has a projected population of 107,948 projected from 2010 Population and Housing Census (PHC). Female to male ratio is 50.8%: 49.2%. The district is a predominantly rural district where 80% of the population are in rural settlement and only 20% found in peri-urban settlement.

Geographical situation

The district is mainly savannah grassland. It has one rainy season, which starts in May and peaks between September-November, followed by a long dry season. The district covers a land area of about 1,100sqkm, with 289 settlements or villages.

Ethnicity:

Konkombas are the main ethnic group with small proportions of Ewes, Moshies, Chekosis and Batos.

Housing and infrastructure

Housing in the district is mostly traditional huts joined by connecting walls to form compound houses and roofed with zinc but some are roofed with thatch. Ventilation is often poor in some set-ups. In the big towns and villages however, there are some rectangular houses built with swish and to a less extent cement blocks and roofed with corrugated sheets or thatch. Ventilation is better in these setups. Settlement pattern in the district is dispersed with a few nucleated ones which are mostly found in bigger communities.

Transportation and communication

There is a public transport system in the district that is operated by some private individuals. Some individuals also own motorcycles and bicycles which serve as a major means of transport for most rural dwellers even in times of health emergencies. River transport is limited to the Oti River for person’s commuting between the district and Togo.

The district is linked to other towns and districts by third class roads. Smaller routes and footpaths also serve to link communities. Generally, Saboba district has very poor road network.

Telecommunication

Telecommunication is mainly by the mobile networks which are MTN, , Telecel and Airteltigo. Mass communication is usually done by use of public address system (PAS) mounted on vehicles, or use of FM Radio stations (Radio Gaaki and Radio Kitalwon) which are both stationed in the district capital. In some instances, announcements are made in Churches and Mosques, through town crier and community durbars. There is also a post office located in Saboba township.

Water supply

Water supply in the district is grossly inadequate and untreated. Saboba Township enjoys pipe borne water which is irregular and does not cover the whole district. This system is very unreliable and often result to water shortage especially in the peri-urban areas.

There are bore-holes in some communities. Most parts of the district do not have potable water therefore, rivers, streams and ponds are their main sources of water. During the dry season, most of these sources dry up causing sever water crises in Saboba district.

Economic Activities

Agriculture is the main occupation of the people in the district. Food crop farming is practiced extensively in the various communities. Crops cultivated are maize, groundnuts, guinea corn, millet, beans, soya beans and rice. Yam is also cultivated on small scale. These crops are produced for both consumption and cash. Cotton is the only cash crop cultivated in the district but has been on limited bases of late. Some fishing is done on the Oti River and in the dry season group hunting is being practiced. Commercial activity is not that much and is limited to the big towns. There is however a great commercial activity on market days when people deal in various merchandise with traders coming in from other adjoining districts and Togo. The main market centres are Saboba, Kpalba, Wapuli, Gbangbanpong and Demon. There is also great market activity across the border where people from the district patronize Togo market like Kpetabu and Kposa.

Education

There are four different categories of educational institutions in the district. These are; Government schools, School for Life (Non formal), Mission and Private. The Government Educational Institutions comprise of;

• Day Care Centres
• Primary Schools
• Junior High Schools
• Senior High Schools

School for Life which is primarily an NGO programme, has schools scattered all over the district which cater for schooling up to primary three-(3) when the pupils then graduate to join the main stream Ghana Education Service Schools.

The Catholic mission runs a Technical Institute whilst the E.P Church runs the Saboba Senior High School. There is also a private SHS located is Saboba.

Political structure:

The district has a District Assembly composed of elected representatives from the various electoral areas and some Government appointees. The total number of assemblymen and women is 37 who are made up 25 elected members and 12 government appointees.

The district has one town council and three area councils. These are;

• Saboba Town Council
• Demon Area Council
• Kpalba Area Council
• Wapuli Area Council

These town/area councils are further subdivided into 25 electoral areas. The entire district constitutes one parliamentary constituency.

The District Assembly serves as the main coordinating body of the various departments and their activities. It plans, formulates and implements all programmes and developmental projects. It also interprets and disseminates government policies. It has the various sub-committees with prescribed tasks.

The District Chief Executive is the political Head. The District Coordinating Director is the administrative Head of all the Decentralized Departments and Agencies.

Decentralised Departments

• Ghana Health Service
• Ghana Education Service
• Ministry of Food and Agriculture
• Information Services Department
• Community Development
• Social Welfare
• Controller and Accountant General

Health institutions in the district

The Ghana Health Service is the overseer of health delivery in the district. There is a District Health Management Team (DHMT), which serves as the technical and administrative unit that supervises and co-ordinates, all health activities in the district.

There are six (6) sub-districts and these are subdivided into forty-one (41) health zones.

The sub-districts are:

• Saboba
• Sambuli
• Kpalba
• Gbangbanpong
• Wapuli
• Natagu

There are 37 health institutions made up of one-(1) District Hospital (CHAG), four-(4) Health Centres/Clinics and thirty two (32) functional CHPS. The population of the district is scattered among 289 communities and 37 demarcated CHPS zones, 32 of which are functional.