Zoomlion Lauds SADA/Asongtaba Guinea Fowl Project

Alhaji Abdulai Abdallah

The Northern Regional Manager of Zoomlionlion Ghana Limited, Alhaji Abdulai Abdallah, has also lauded the initiative by the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority [SADA] and Asongtaba Cottage Industries, to boost the guinea fowl poultry industry in the Northern Ecological Zone of the country because it would lead to poverty alleviation and economic empowerment of the people. 

However, he observed that, such a huge investment being made towards the guinea fowl project, could yield more dividends amongst the people in the short and long terms, if local industries such as Zoomlion Ghana Limited that had the capacity to produce the right variety of poultry feed was also engaged in this venture.

Speaking exclusively to this blogger in an interview on an array of issues bothering on sanitation in the Tamale Metropolis and his view of the prospects of the guinea fowl project embarked upon by SADA and Asongtaba, Alhaji Abdallah stated that, the rearing of guinea fowls was part and parcel of the culture and traditions of the Northern people, and cited that, in almost every northern home one visited the person would definitely find guinea fowls in small or large colonies being reared with passion, because of the enormous economic gains that individuals and their families made from the rearing of such birds.

He also said that, even meat products from guinea fowls could never be compared to the meat of ordinary poultry such as hens/cocks, ducks, peacocks, turkey among others in terms of deliciousness, hence the high demand for guinea fowls on the Ghanaian market most especially during festive occasions.

    

Thus, he observed that, since this was the first major step ever to be taken by any group of investors to breed guinea fowls in such a large scale for local consumption and export, it would require the right amount of feed and other supplements to feed the birds because of the nature of their vulnerability.

Alhaji Abdallah indicated that Zoomlion Ghana Limited had what it takes to support the two investors in their initiative and encouraged them to come into partnership with the company in order to achieve more and better results that would inure to their benefits and the people of the North as a whole.

For instance, he noted that Zoomlion Ghana Limited had the capacity to produce any variety of poultry feed that would be required to feed the birds and that in his estimation, would further go a long way to enhance the financial muscle of many local agro industries as well as create more jobs for people given that the company, would also procure a lot of the raw materials needed to make the feed from farmers in the SADA operational zone if it was engaged to do that.

SADA and Asongtaba Cottage Industries, a private investor went into partnership through the former’s initiative to boost the guinea fowl industry in the North. But many doubting people thought this partnership would not yield any positive results because they thought it was a fruitless venture.

Besides, a lot of allegations had been leveled against management of SADA and the government for conspiring to loot the state, because the money the former claimed it invested into the guinea fowl project was diverted to the latter for other purposes. However, SADA refuted the allegation saying there was no iota of truth in it.

Turning his attention to the issue of sanitation and waste management, Alhaji Abdallah told this blogger that Zoomlion Ghana Limited was up to the task and mandate given to it by the Tamale Metropolitan Assembly to rid the city of filth.

He was however worried that most residents threw solid waste inside gutters when communal containers were just few meters away from them. He added that, although the NAMCOP (Nationwide Mosquito Control Program) was into desilting of minor drains, major drains in the city could be desilted but through communal labour in collaboration with Zoomlion Ghana Limited.

Mr. Abdallah also insisted that it was the responsibility of every community in the city to clean its environs and desilt choked gutters as their contribution towards ensuring a clean Tamale. He passionately appealed to residents of the region to stop pouring fire into Zoomlion communal containers since the habit reduces the lifespan of the containers.

Meanwhile, currently Tamale generates 250 tonnes of waste on daily basis and it cost the Assembly GH¢2.5million every year on sanitation and management, according to official records.

About 60 percent of the entire city does not have drainage systems or gutters and as a result, anytime the slightest rain occurred, residential areas located around serious waterlogged areas experience flooding.

Besides, even residential areas where there were gutters, most of them were heavily choked as a result of residents’ wanton disregard for good environmental practices and often resort to throwing solid waste into these gutters instead of disposing them off at public waste collection sites.

These choked gutters do not only produce a horrible smell, but they also serve as fertile breeding grounds for mosquitoes and other flies, which sometimes lead to severe cholera outbreak.

Once the cleanest city in Ghana, Tamale is gradually becoming a slum and this is due to the poor waste management attitude of the Assembly officials coupled with the absence of the spirit of communal labour amongst residents, thus painting a dire picture for the entire metropolis.

Consistently, litterbins along most principal streets within the metropolis are being stolen by some unscrupulous individuals and turned into domestic waste containers in their homes whereas some use them to fetch water.