Opinion: MIM Deserves Ahafo Regional Capital

News

Opinion: MIM Deserves Ahafo Regional Capital

As stakes become so high for the selection of a deserving regional capital for the newly created Ahafo Region, several concerned groups are making different suggestions and proposals for some towns to be chosen as the capital of the region.
Some of the people are proposing that Goaso, Bechem or Duayaw Nkwanta should be the regional capital, but they all seem to get it all wrong because they appear to be deliberately neglecting Mim, the best among all the towns in the Ahafo region which is the largest, industrial hub, with vast lands, infrastructure and also has the largest population in the new region.
Checks reveal that, GOASO has no available land to accommodate even a regional coordinating council/residency.
Those who say make Goaso the CAPITAL and build the various infrastructure on other stool lands are just exhibiting ignorance.
What makes GOASO special?
You can't build something on MIM stool land and emboss GOASO on it.
The only option is to name MIM as Regional Capital or make it MIM-GOASO. Every Regional capital has a master plan.

A paramount chief will only allow his land to be used in a master plan of another town if only if his town is named as a co-capital.
If we are to draw the master plan of Goaso, where's the land to draw it?

CENTRALITY: The centrality theory doesn't hold when it comes to siting regional capital.
So Kenyase and Hwidiem should not even come in the equation!
None of the distances between the various District capitals in the Ahafo region is even more than 100km.
So, where's the need to even consider centrality?

Accra, Cape Coast,Takoradi, etc are not not centrally located but they are the Regional Capitals.
Kwame Nkrumah made those cities Regional Capitals for some reasons.

He realised Ports & Habours, and other companies can spring up because of the unique resource (sea) in those areas.
Investors don't just come into a Regional capital.

Investor must first see some natural resource base. MIM is the only town with wide variety of resources to attract investors in this regard.
LAND:

Availability of land makes MIM stands out when it comes to sitting a Regional Capital.
The Mim stool lands cover almost 1/3 of the total landmass of the Ahafo Region.
Parts of Mim stool land have been used to support the creation of both Asutifi North/South Districts.
VESTED LAND: Regional capital is created with futuristic view but not just the current infrastructure that a town has.
For town planing purposes, every regional capital which had been created in the past, were allocated large vested land around it for future development.

Such Vested lands (reserved lands) are government lands to be used for future projects such as: Schools, Military barracks, other government Installations, Airport, University, Regional Hospital etc.
In fact, in 1962, Dr Kwame Nkrumah used the power of eminent domain to acquire large vested land for the various Ahafo Towns.

Because of development, towns such as: Bechem,Duayawnkwanta & Goaso have used almost all their vested lands.
Checks from Lands commission show that, Mim & Kukuom are the only towns with vast vested land
(Land reserved for government projects).

In fact, the topography of the Mim vested land is perfect for government to develop into modern city.
Government doesn't have to spend billions of cedis to acquire land elsewhere.

Even with billions of cedis in hand, convincing farmers in other towns to allow their cash crops like Cocoa to be destroyed for the sake of Regional capital infrastructure may end the whole region in court.
Mim having readily available land is primed for Regional Capital.

POPULATION: Despite Mim not being a District capital, it is still the biggest & most populous town in the Ahafo Region.

For example, Mim town alone has a population of over 30,000. This is more than the total population of some districts.
You have such big town with no Fire service , no Hospital etc.
It's only prudent that, you bring the Regional Capital to MIM and by extension, the Regional Hospital.
INDUSTRIALIZATION:

MIM & its enclave is still the most industrialized town in the whole of Ahafo.
The Regional capital must be industrialized to create employment in order to curb the regional migration
For now, Mim hosts about 70% of all the big companies in the whole of Ahafo.
The collapsed companies will return to life and many more new companies will spring up if Mim is put on a scale of a regional capital.

Mim is already magnetized with all the resources to attract companies/investors which will reduce the unemployment rate in the region.
NATURAL RESOURCES: When we talk about Ahafo having natural resources, about 55â„… of it is found within the MIM enclave.

This explains why almost all the manufacturing companies are located within the Mim enclave.
Aside the Timber & Cashew Companies, Mim has the largest sand deposit, Gold deposit, rocks which can attract big quarrying companies.

The road from Gambia to Bibiani was constructed with this gravels or chippings from Mim.
Availability of Water: Mim has two big man-made Dams which can serve a whole city like Accra.
With such available water sources, the GHANA WATER COMPANY will just take advantage of it.
Electricity: The Gridco substation is located at Mim. Mim office supplies power to Dormaa Ahenkro others, part of Western Region and about 70â„… of Ahafo areas.
Companies prefer proximity to source of power.
Tourism: The #mimbour is the only tourist site in Ahafo.

With MIM being the Regional Capital, the tourist site can be developed and that alone can create hundreds of employment.
GOASO & BECHEM are just over hyped! Our local conomy is public- sector driven.

You need the public sector institutions to drive the levers of growth.
Wherever Government Agencies & Departments are located, you see some rapid development.

Most of the services sector actors like Banks, telecom companies, Hostels, Electronic media etc troop into wherever government establishes its Agencies & Departments.

Any other town such as Mim will develop in leaps & bounds if same government institutions are sited there.
Mim has a lot of infrastructure in place to ensure smooth take off of Ahafo region.
There's the need to start the regional offices on fresh note.

If GOASO & BECHEM are saying they have the offices already, how then can we absorb new people into such offices which are already choked? Let Goaso & Bechem maintain their offices. The Ahafo Region is new and it must come with its own new offices.
Unemployed graduates need jobs!

Below TOWNS don't qualify on technical grounds:
DUAYAWNKWANTA, BECHEM, HWIDIEM & KENYASE.
Kenyase & Duayawnkwanta share boundary with Sunyani Municipal and technically they do not qualify to be given Regional Capital.

Bechem for instant is also closer to Sunyani & Kumasi.
Assuming a Regional Hospital is sited at HWIDIEM, a patient from Bechem will prefer Sunyani Regional Hospital to Hwidiem Regional Hospital.

The proximity of Bechem & Duayawnkwanta to Sunyani automatically disqualifies them for Regional Capital.

I'M 4 #MIM or
#MIM-GOASO.........

Source: BOADU: 0244960342