Npong Balikawu Francis

By: Francis Npong World Vision Ghana has been honoured by the Ahafo Regional Coordinating Council, in collaboration with the Asutifi North District and Asunafo North Municipal Assemblies, for transforming access to safe and sustainable water and sanitation services in rural communities across the region. The joint recognition, marked by the presentation of a commemorative plaque, highlights the…

By: Francis Npong The grand ballroom of the Mövenpick Ambassador Hotel in Accra, Ghana, pulsed with anticipation. Along the stage, banners emblazoned with the words “Hope for Every Child” set a powerful tone, while the steady murmur of voices filled the space. Dignitaries, development partners, and community leaders gathered, each step signalling the beginning of what many believed would mark a…

Smallholder farmers in Ghana produce more than 60 per cent of Ghana’s agricultural produce, yet they continue to grapple with entrenched challenges—limited access to finance, weak market linkages, inadequate infrastructure and increasing exposure to climate-related risks.  As Ghana’s agricultural sector confronts rising food demand and climate shocks, the need for stronger partnership has become…

The United States Government, through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), has provided $3 million (over 48 million Ghanaian Cedis) to support over 10,000 farmers affected by the dry spell and improve healthcare delivery in 17 districts in northern Ghana.The funds are being disbursed under the Feed the Future Resilience in Northern Ghana Systems Strengthening Activity to 23…

This project will fill gaps left by several livelihood and income-generation interventions and will address critical issues such as poverty, access to financial services, hunger, and malnutrition, among others.

By: Francis Npong World Vision Ghana will roll out an ambitious project in April to accelerate Ghana’s achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The project, dubbed “Transforming Household Resilience in Vulnerable Environments (THRIVE),” is envisioned to build secure and resilient livelihoods in the poorest communities in the Northern, Upper East, Upper West, and Savannah regions…

Adama Musah, Chief of Fulani community in Kassena Nankana West District contributing to discussions on FMNR management, conflict resolution and transformation. Photo: Francis Npong Story & Photos: Francis Npong Dressed in a green “batakari” (long attire) with a red hat, Adama Musah joined chiefs, farmers, women leaders, and assembly members at a local high-level meeting organized by World…

Asaah Awinpoaga working on pottery products in her house. Story & Photos: Francis Npong The traditional pottery craft was at risk of disappearing forever in Amutanga, in the Kassena Nankana District in the Upper East Region of Ghana. However, World Vision Ghana’s Farmer-Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR) site has allowed traditional potters to keep their craft alive and make a living from…

By: Francis Npong The obsession for football in Ghana began after the Ghana National Team-the Black Stars and the Black Satellites-successfully won the African Cup of Nations in 1963, 1965, 1978, and 1982. Ghana later won the FIFA World Cup Under-17 twice and the Under-20 World Cup in 2009 after defeating Brazil in the final of the tournament in Egypt. These victories increased interest in…

Did we elect traitors or leaders? For this reason, Ghana must brace for future calamity and a leadership crisis.

 Opinion: Francis Npong When Judas Iscariot was asked to join Jesus’ ministry, he was already engaged in money-making. He is thought to have hailed from a family with ties to terrorism, theft, and a fanatical Jewish sect that was obsessed with accumulating fortune at any cost. Judas humbly made a bid for a more lucrative role in Jesus’ ministry: finance. Judas was given money for the ministry…

Booing Nana Addo Akuffo: Expressing Sentiments of a Failed Leadership and System

Francis Npong, Citizen I’m not sure whether I should be an obedient citizen, a humble Christian, or just a normal human trying to survive. As a member of the surviving Ghanaians, I live in fear and without hope for the future. I’m not concerned about myself, but about the hopeless next generation, we’re producing. I fully understand what the Bible prescribes for Christians to do or not do.…

TV3 GMB2022: Teiya Presentation Disputed

Francis Npong TV3 Ghana’s reality show, Ghana’s Most Beautiful, over the years, took Ghanaians through the histories of Ghanaian tribes. It’s a regional-based educational entertainment show. Last Sunday’s presentation by the northern region’s representative, One Teiya, sought to tell a story of how a certain Dagomba dance came about and ended up incurring the displeasure of two tribes, the…

Weak economic fundamentals: The dilemma of Bawumia

Photo credit: The Fourth Estate Its been a while since Dr Bawumia updated the nation on the economic situation. What are the prices of kenkey and fish and cedi rate to other foreign currencies? Do we still have the dollar in Ghana prison? Ghanaians should be regularly updated on this and other juicy economic recovery plans we were promised as a responsibility. The economic “messiah” is at the…

Investment in water, energy, technologies and public-private partnership solution to sustainable vegetable farming in northern Ghana

By: Francis Npong Farmers in urban and peri-urban settlements in the northern region have incorporated dry-season vegetable farming as both an income and livelihood strategy. Access to markets and inputs makes vegetable farming for this category of farmers viable. Dry-season farming enabled them to stay active throughout the year. Photo: Francis Npong, Tamale Further improvement in water,…

By: Francis Npong West African woodlands are shrinking at an alarming rate due to population pressure. Forest resources, such as woodfuel, provide a source of energy and subsistence for a bigger percentage of this population. Erosion following tree removal, exposing soil in Ontonagon Co. | Photo by Mike Schira Tree felling for commercial charcoal production, animal grazing, and bush…

Conversations on gender have followed strategic gender-based programming at all levels of society. Since the 1990s, the focus of gender-based programming has been on women's and girls’ empowerment and mainstreaming.

By: Francis Npong Photo: Francis Npong Conversations on gender have followed strategic gender-based programming at all levels of society. Since the 1990s, the focus of gender-based programming has been on women’s and girls’ empowerment and mainstreaming. Without a doubt, women are under-represented in all aspects of social, political, religious, and economic life. In the last 30 years,…

Eliminating child labour in cocoa farms require new strategies

Photo: Graphic Business. By: Francis Npong In Ghana’s cocoa-growing areas, there are still a lot of reported incidences of child labour. What could be the source of this persistence, despite several initiatives and investments aimed at ending child labour? Eliminating child labour in cocoa farms require new approaches. Understanding the realities of cocoa-growing families and communities, on…

Can science assist in the development of a thriving agriculture sector that incorporates water resource management to keep up with population growth?

By: Francis Npong Rural women transplanting rice. Photo: Francis Npong By 2050, the world’s population is expected to reach nine billion. This demands an increase in food production and the conservation of water bodies to meet the food and water needs of the growing population. This means that the global food system must be given priority attention. According to the UN Food and Agriculture…