Nadowli-Kaleo: Takpo-Nyuori residents appeal for permanent bridge

For years, residents have relied on wooden logs laid across a waterway to move between nearby communities. However, rising water levels during the rainy season often wash away the makeshift crossing or make it impassable.

Residents say a journey of less than 800 metres can stretch into several kilometres when they have to use alternative routes, increasing travel time and transportation costs for schoolchildren, traders and other commuters.

A trader in the community, Alijatu Salifu said the unsafe crossing regularly disrupts her business, particularly during heavy rainfall.

“I am a trader and I have been passing on this bridge for years to nearby communities to trade, but looking at it, it is dangerous. Sometimes when it rains and the water level rises, I am compelled to go back home until the water goes down for me to be able to cross, and that affects my business,” she said.

The Assembly Member for the area, Alexis Anzagra, said the community lacked the resources to construct a permanent bridge, forcing residents to rebuild temporary crossings after rainfall.

“This bridge has been a headache for us for so many years. During the rainy season, water level rises and carries the makeshift bridge away. Once the rain stops we have to come back and fix another,” he said.

The residents are appealing to the government, the District Chief Executive, their Member of Parliament and other stakeholders to intervene.

The Member of Parliament for Nadowli-Kaleo, Anthony Mwinkaara Sumah, has expressed readiness to support efforts to construct a permanent bridge, but says a technical assessment is needed to determine the scope of work required.

He said he would support the District Assembly to undertake the project if the assessment establishes that it can be handled at the district level.