It has emerged that 70 percent of community members in northern Ghana lack access to essential productive assets to support their livelihoods. This means that 7 out of 10 Ghanaians within the northern sector of the country do not have assets that can enhance their standard of living.
This stark reality was revealed through a baseline study conducted by the Ghana Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), in partnership with CARO Ghana and funded by the Global Community Engagement and Resilience Fund (GCERF).
From the report, only 30% of communities reported having adequate resources to support their livelihoods. The survey covered 15 districts across the Upper East, Upper West, and North East regions. It highlighted not only this glaring asset gap but also deficiencies in financial management and marketing skills among residents.
The findings were presented during a dialogue session where stakeholders, including traditional leaders, women’s groups, youth associations, and service providers, gathered to discuss urgent interventions.
“From the baseline survey, we realised that out of every 10, there are 7 people who don’t have access to productive assets. When we refer to productive assets from our baseline, it refers to land, farming tools, and livestock. There were also disparities in terms of limited access to essential productive assets,” a program officer at CDD-Ghana revealed at the dialogue session.
This confirms the economic vulnerabilities in the northern sector. With three-quarters of households lacking foundational assets, many are vulnerable to shocks, like drought, health emergencies, or economic downturns, and have limited means to recover or adapt.
Without access to land or tools, the impact is seen in the high rural-urban migration rate, where the youth and families are more prone to migration or engagement in risky livelihoods, potentially undermining social stability and cohesion.
The findings uncovered by the CDD-Ghana, for communities across northern Ghana, aren’t just statistics. It’s a clarion call calling for interventions that, without productive assets and supportive capacity-building, dreams of sustenance, stability, and prosperity remain out of reach for many in the north.
