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| Abetifi Kubaase-Hene's Palace |
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| Abetifi 400 year old tree |
CAPITAL : Abetifi
LAND AREA : it is approximated to be about 860 square Kilometers
BOUNDARIES :
It shares common boundaries with the Kwahu North District to the east, Kwahu South District to the south, Fanteakwa District to the south-east and Asante- Akim North to the north.
RELIEF
The district lies within three physiographic regions namely the Southern Voltaian Plateau, the Forest Dissected Plateau and the Plains which stretch into the Southern Voltaian Plateau and rises from 60m to 150m above sea level.
The district consists of a series of escarpments, notable among which is the Kwahu scarp rising from 220m to 640m above sea level. This scarp has two prominent mountains – namely the Odwenanoma and Apaku.
DRAINAGE
The district is drained mainly by the Afram River which is a major tributary of the Volta River. It could be a major source of irrigation for the production of vegetables all year round.
Waterfalls found in the district include the Oworobong, Oku Abena and Buku located at Oworobong, Bokuruwa and Kwahu Tafo respectively. These have the potential of being developed into tourist sites for both domestic and foreign purposes.
CLIMATE AND RAINFALL
It lies within the west semi-Equatorial region. It experiences the double maxima rainfall pattern namely the major and minor rainy seasons. The major rainy season starts from April and ends in July. On the other hand, the minor rainy season starts from September, ending in October. Annual average rainfall is between 1580mm and 1780mm. Rainfall intensity however, decreases towards the Voltaian basin.
The district comes under the influence of two main air masses namely, the Tropical Maritime air mass (mT) and the Tropical Continental (cT). The mT hits the district twice a year thereby causing the two rainy seasons. The two occasions are May to August and then September to October. Between the months of November and March, the district is affected by the cT air mass making the area warm and dry.
Mean monthly temperature ranges from as high as 30°c in the dry season but declines to 26°c in the wet season. It is worthy to note that the relatively higher altitude has moderating influence on the local temperature.
Relative humidity ranges between 75% and 80%.
VEGETATION
The district lies within the Semi- Deciduous forest zone. The vegetation is dense in terms of tree coverage with most trees shedding off their leaves in the dry season.
Trees of economic value like Odum, Wawa, Sapele, etc. are found in the forest. The forest is made of three layers namely the upper, middle and lower layers. A greater part of the natural vegetation has been altered due to man’s activities on the land such as timber extraction and farming on the environment. Most areas have been replaced by secondary bush or forest which is easily distinguished from the climatic climax vegetation.
The forest however, remains in their natural state in the five (5) reserve areas namely the Southern Scarp Forest, Oworobong South, Abisu, Northern Scarp West, and Oworobong North Forest reserves. Together, the reserves cover a total of 37,070 hectares of land.
The forest reserves in the district are very rich in minerals and biodiversity. Several plant species of both commercial and scientific value can be identified. The available tree species commonly found include: odum, Kyenkyen, dahoma, and mahogany. Others are bompagya, emire, ofram, Wawa and onyina.
Timber logging activities are important in Kwahu Tafo, Hweehwee, Pepease, and Abene. The rest are Sempoa, Suminakese, Mota, Asikam, and Aduhema. About 1794 acres of teak, ginelyna, cefrella, leaceana trees have also been planted in parts of the Southern and Northern Scarps.
SOIL
Is forest ochrosols and consist of fine sand loams, congregational loams, non- gravel sandy clay and iron pan soils. These soils possess good chemical properties of clay and appreciable amount of humus, making them generally fertile for the production of both cash and food crops such as cocoa, coffee, plantain, cassava, yams, etc.
ECONOMICS
AGRICULTURAL SECTOR
LIVESTOCK AND POULTRY
BREED OF ANIMALS/BIRDS
The animals and birds reared in the district include:
• Sheep
• Goats
• Rabbits
• Cattle
• Grass cutter
• Pigs(local and exotic)
• Ducks(local) and
• Poultry(local and exotic)
DISTRIBUTION
These animals and birds are reared in various parts and settlements of the district.
FISH FARMING: Unfortunately the topography of the District does not suit the
CROPS AND VEGETABLE CULTIVATION
The Kwahu East District unlike other districts, is a semi-deciduous forest which has cash /economic crops cultivated.
The table below shows the main food and cash crops grown in various communities with the district.
Main Food and Cash Crops Grown
| NO. | NAME OF CROP | AREAS OF CULTIVATION |
| 1 | Cocoa | Oframase, Miaso, Ankoma |
| 2 | Coffee | Miaso |
| 3 | Kola | Ankoma |
| 4 | Cassava | Asikam |
| 5 | Yam | Sempoa, Asempaneye, Koranteng |
| 6 | Maize | Pepease, Oworobong, Nkwantanang, Onyemso, Oframase, Miaso, Hweehwee |
| 7 | Cocoyam | Kwahu Tafo |
| 8 | Potato | Kotoso |
| 9 | Oil Palm | Nteso, Oframase |
| 10 | Tiger nut | Aduamoa |
| 11 | Banana | Oframase |
| 12 | Cowpea | Pepease, Nkwantanang |
| 13 | Ground nut | Pepease, Nkwantanang, Hweehwee, Oboyan, Kwahu Tafo, Abotiriansa |
| 14 | Pepper | Kotoso |
| 15 | Tomatoes | Suminakese, Hweehwee, Nteso, Onyemso, Kwahu Tafo |
| 16 | Onions | Suminakese |
| 17 | Shallots | Suminakese, Hweehwee, Oboyan, Pepease, Onyemso |
| 18 | Egg-Plant | Hweehwee, Oboyan, Suminakese, Onyemso |
| 19 | Okro | Suminakese |
BLOCK FARM PROGRAMME
During the year 2010, twenty (20) hectares of maize was cultivated in various farming communities in the district. The Block Farm Programme is expected to provide employment for the rural youth and to discourage the rural urban migration of unemployed youth.
Farmers were supplied with planting materials and fertilizers at subsidized prices. Staff of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture provided technical advice.
TRADE AND COMMERCE
Trading in various commodities both on small and large scale basis and on commercial scale is the main business in the district. The major marketing centers in the district include: Kotoso, Hweehwee, Miaso, Suminakese and Onyimso.
MARKETS
MARKETS IN KWAHU EAST
| NO. | MARKET CENTER | MARKET DAY | REMARKS |
| 1 | Abetifi | Daily | Confined |
| 2 | Kotoso | Tuesday & Friday | Opened |
| 3 | Miaso | Thursday s | Opened |
| 4 | Hweehwee | Thursday s | Opened |
| 5 | Sempoa | Thursday s | Opened |
| 6 | Onyimso | Thursday s | Opened |
| 7 | Suminakese | Monday s & Wednesday s | Opened |
| 8 | Oframase | Wednesday s | Opened |
| 9 | Tafo | Daily | Confined |
INVESTMENT POTENTIALS
With an agrarian economy, i.e. over 50% of the population engaged in the agricultural sector, the district offers great potentials for investment both human and natural.
CLIMATE
The district has a favourable climate for agriculture as it enjoys double maximum rainfall with temperature ranging between 26 °c and 30°c. it is however, worthy to note that the natural vegetation typical of the forest zone has been altered due to activities of human.
The ecological balance has not been much affected in the forest reserves. The forest however, remains in the natural state in the five (5) reserve areas namely the Southern Scarp Forest, Oworobong South, Abisu, Northern Scarp West, and Oworobong North Forest reserves. Together, the reserves cover a total of 37,070 hectares of land.
WATER RESOURCES
Kwahu East District is drained by a number of rivers. Notable among them are rivers Afram, Oworobong and Asubone. These rivers have rich stocks of fish, crab, shrimps, etc. whose full potentials have not been tapped. Besides, some of them could be developed for river transport as well as used for irrigation.
Closely linked to the irrigation potentials provided by the rivers are the low lying vast lands especially along the Afram river and the Volta lake which could support commercial agriculture.
BAMBOO CRAFT
Bamboo abounds along river banks in the district. This would be given a boost by plans to plant more bamboo to serve as raw material for the development of bamboo craft.
FISH FARMING
The area along the Afram River and Volta lake offers great potential for the establishment of fish farms. Tilapia and other fish stocks on high demand on the market currently could be ventured into by investors.
VEGETABLE FARMING
In Ghana presently, there is growing public awareness on the nutritional value of vegetables in the diet. The Afram River has great potential for irrigation for fresh vegetable farming.
STONE CITY / QUARRY
Around Suminakese, Abene and Oworobong is unique scenery of stones. This could be developed as tourist site. Besides, the areas offer great potential for the establishment of stone quarry for road construction and the building industry.
HUMAN / ARTIFICIAL RESOURCES
These are the man made resources that could be utilized for investment purposes. They include:
YOUTHFUL POPULATION
The 2000 population census puts the population of the youth in the district at 40%. The youthful population constitutes a potential source of labour supply both skilled and unskilled for investment.
TOURISM
Kwahu East District has great potential for tourism development. The largely undeveloped tourism sector is reflected in the relief, drainage, festivals, hotel accommodation, restaurant and bars, pottery, historical sites and shrines.
NATURAL RESOURCES
Among the resources naturally found in the district are:
gold, bauxite, manganese, granite stone and clay. The bulk of these mineral resources still remains untapped and could be found in the following locations as shown in the table below.
LOCATIONS OF MINERAL RESOURCES
| NO. | TYPE OF RESOURCES | LOCATION |
| 1 | Gold | Asikam, Aduhema, Mota, Hweehwee |
| 2 | Bauxite | Akwasiho |
| 3 | Manganese | Bokuruwa, Abene, Hweehwee, Sempoa, Abetifi, Ankoma |
| 4 | Granite Stone | Bokuruwa, Abene, Hweehwee, Sempoa, Abetifi, Ankoma |
| 5 | Clay | Odumasi, Aduhema, Asikam |
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