Profile Of Agona East District
Agona East District Health Directorate (AEDHD) is one of the twenty districts of the Central Regional Health Administration of the Ghana Health Service (GHS). GHS is one of the Agencies of Ministry of Health responsible for planning and implementing health policies at National, Regional, District and sub-district levels.
Mission
The mission of the organization is to provide and prudently manage comprehensive and accessible health service with special emphasis on primary health care at regional, district and sub-district level in accordance with approved national policies
Background Information
Agona East District is situated in the eastern corner of the Central Region within latitudes 5030’ and 5050’N and between longitudes 0035’ and 0055’ W. It has a total land area of 667 square kilometers. The District is divided into Five (5) sub-districts or Town/Area Councils namely, Nsaba, Duakwa/Mensakrom, Asafo, Kwanyako and Mankrong Area councils.The district in total has 27 health facilities which includes 19 chps zones,4 health center,1 polyclinic, 1 Chag hospital, 1 private maternity home and 1 private clinic. The District is bordered to the North by Birim South, to the Northeast by West Akim, to the South by Agona West District, to the East by Efutu-Senya District and to the Northwest and West by Asikuma-Odoben-Brakwa and Ajumako-Enyan-Essiam Districts.The District capital, Nsaba, is at a nodal point of roads radiating to the rich cocoa growing areas of the Central Region. Nsaba is approximately thirty-five kilometers North of Winneba
Relief And Drainage
Agona East District has a diversified relief with altitudes varying between 75-150 meters above sea level with the highest point being 350 meters. The district has undulating and sloppy topography from north to south with isolated hillocks in the north- east, most of which are made up of granite rocks. Two main rivers, Akora and Ayensu, primarily drain the land. There are other small rivers like Abena, Nsu and Enchiwi, which could be useful for purposes of irrigation.
Soil And Land Use
The major soil type found in the District is classified as Forest ochrosols. These soils are alkaline and richly supplied with nutrients which make them suitable for cultivating varied agricultural produce like cocoa, citrus, oil palm and coconut. Typical forest food crops available are plantain, banana, cassava, cocoyam and maize. Vegetables such as pepper, garden eggs, tomato, okro and sugar cane are also cultivated.
Climate And Vegetation
Generally, the District lies in the wet semi-equatorial climatic zone. It has two main crop growing seasons: a bio-modal pattern of rainfall with the maximum occurring in May/June and September/October. The annual rainfall figure lies within the range of 1000 mm – 1400 mm. The dry season starts in December and ends in March with the highest mean monthly temperature of 33.80 occurring between March/April and the lowest of about 29.40 C in August. (Vide Table of Rainfall and Temperature figures). The area falls within the moist tropical and semi-deciduous forest with a lot of valuable timber trees like Mahogany, Sapele, Silk Cotton, Wawa and Odum. Due to over logging most of the timber trees are no more. The most predominant and giant trees left are the silk cotton. The recent award of concessions for the harvesting of these trees poses the greatest ecological danger to the environment.
Education
To improve educational accessibility across the district, significant efforts have been made during the recent Medium-Term Development Plan implementation. This included the construction of numerous public schools to complement those offered by the private sector, particularly at the foundational level. The district’s educational landscape comprises:
1. One Twenty Seven (127) pre-schools
2. One Twenty Three (123) primary schools
3. Ninety Seven (97) junior high schools
4. Six (6) senior high schools
5. Two (2) technical vocational institutes
These institutions collectively contribute to enhancing educational opportunities and fostering learning across the district, ensuring a robust framework for future generations.
