Wa, Ghana
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (July 2023) |
Wa | |
|---|---|
Town | |
_3.JPG) View of a high street in Wa | |
  Wa Location of Wa in Upper West Region | |
| Coordinates: 10°4′N 2°30′W / 10.067°N 2.500°W | |
| Country | Ghana |
| Region | Upper West Region |
| District | Wa Municipal District |
| Elevation | 305 m (1,001 ft) |
| Population (2012) | |
| • Total | 102,446[1] |
| Time zone | GMT |
| • Summer (DST) | GMT |
| Area code | 039 |
| Website | wamunicipal.gov.gh |
Wa is a town and the capital of the Wa Municipal District and the Upper West Region of Ghana.[2] It has a population of 200,672 people according to the 2021 census.[3]
The town is a transportation hub for the Upper West region, with major roads leading north to Hamile, and northeast to Tumu and the Upper East Region. There is also a small airport, named the Wa Airport.[4]
History
[edit]The Lobis were originally the first settlers of the area (now Wa). It grew into a important center of trade due to being situated near the Black Volta.
Under the Northern Protectorates, the town experienced slow infrastructure development due to neglection by the colonial administration.[5]
Demographics
[edit]| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 21,393 | — |
| 1984 | 36,000 | +68.3% |
| 2000 | 102,446 | +184.6% |
| 2010 | 125,479 | +22.5% |
| Source: Ghana Statistical Service.[6][7] | ||
In 1880 it is estimated that Wa had about 8,000 people. This number is thought to have fallen to 2,000 by 1900. In 1921 the census found the population to be 2,806. The population had risen to 5,207 by 1931. In that year the Wa district of the Wala Native Authority had a population of 13,025. In 1948 Wa had a population of 5,128 while the district had 15,827 people. In 1960 the population was 14,406. In 1970 the population had risen to 21,393.[8]
In 1984 Wa had a population of 36,000. In 2012, it had a population settlement of 102,446.[9]
In the 1880s Wa was said to have a population that was entirely Muslim. The Ahmadiyya began gaining converts here in the 1930s. Recent estimates place the overall population of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Wa as about 5% Catholic, but how much this is in Wa and how much in other areas under the diocese is not clear. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints established a branch in Wa in mid-2017, making it so that every region in Ghana had at least one official congregation of the Church.
Transportation
[edit]There is public transport from Wa to major cities such as Accra; Kumasi, Mim, Ahafo; Cape Coast, Sunyani; Tamale; Tema; Ho; Bolgatanga; Elubo; Aflao, Techiman.
Geography
[edit]Wa is located in the north-western part of Ghana. It has a size that covers a total land area of 579.86 km2 (223.89 sq mi). It is located in a savanna, with an average height between 160 mm (0.52 ft) and 300 mm (0.98 ft) above sea level.[5]
Climate
[edit]Average annual rainfall is around 879 millimetres (34.6 in), almost all of which occurs between May and October.
The municipal share surrounding borders with Wa West District to the west, Nadowli Kaleo District to the north, the east, with Wa East District, Sawla Tuna Kalba Districts to the south.
Following the May–October rainy season is a cool dry period called the Harmattan when a steady, often dusty, north wind blows from the Sahara. The hottest period of the year is in February and March when daytime temperatures often reach 40 °C (104 °F).
| Climate data for Wa | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 38.9 (102.0) |
40.0 (104.0) |
41.7 (107.1) |
41.7 (107.1) |
39.4 (102.9) |
37.2 (99.0) |
33.9 (93.0) |
34.1 (93.4) |
34.4 (93.9) |
36.7 (98.1) |
38.9 (102.0) |
38.0 (100.4) |
41.7 (107.1) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 34.4 (93.9) |
35.9 (96.6) |
36.1 (97.0) |
34.8 (94.6) |
32.8 (91.0) |
30.5 (86.9) |
29.1 (84.4) |
28.8 (83.8) |
29.5 (85.1) |
32.4 (90.3) |
34.5 (94.1) |
33.8 (92.8) |
32.7 (90.9) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 26.9 (80.4) |
29.1 (84.4) |
30.0 (86.0) |
29.1 (84.4) |
27.8 (82.0) |
26.1 (79.0) |
25.0 (77.0) |
24.5 (76.1) |
24.7 (76.5) |
26.5 (79.7) |
27.5 (81.5) |
26.7 (80.1) |
27.0 (80.6) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 19.4 (66.9) |
21.7 (71.1) |
23.7 (74.7) |
24.0 (75.2) |
23.1 (73.6) |
22.0 (71.6) |
21.6 (70.9) |
21.3 (70.3) |
21.2 (70.2) |
21.6 (70.9) |
21.2 (70.2) |
19.4 (66.9) |
21.7 (71.1) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 12.8 (55.0) |
15.6 (60.1) |
18.9 (66.0) |
18.9 (66.0) |
18.9 (66.0) |
19.6 (67.3) |
18.9 (66.0) |
18.3 (64.9) |
18.9 (66.0) |
18.9 (66.0) |
17.2 (63.0) |
12.2 (54.0) |
12.2 (54.0) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 3 (0.1) |
14 (0.6) |
41 (1.6) |
94 (3.7) |
131 (5.2) |
139 (5.5) |
149 (5.9) |
192 (7.6) |
215 (8.5) |
81 (3.2) |
17 (0.7) |
6 (0.2) |
1,082 (42.6) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.3 mm) | 1 | 2 | 4 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 13 | 16 | 18 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 92 |
| Average relative humidity (%) (at 15:00) | 16 | 18 | 28 | 44 | 55 | 63 | 66 | 69 | 68 | 51 | 33 | 19 | 44 |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 285.2 | 265.6 | 266.6 | 225.0 | 266.6 | 228.0 | 207.7 | 176.7 | 189.0 | 285.2 | 279.0 | 297.6 | 2,972.2 |
| Mean daily sunshine hours | 9.2 | 9.4 | 8.6 | 7.5 | 8.6 | 7.6 | 6.7 | 5.7 | 6.3 | 9.2 | 9.3 | 9.6 | 8.1 |
| Source: Deutscher Wetterdienst[10] | |||||||||||||
Economy
[edit]Despite its urban status, Wa is in many ways still an agricultural community, and the majority of the Wa population make a good portion of their living in small scale farming. The main crops are corn, millet, yams, okra and groundnuts. Upland rice is also farmed in a few areas of Wa. The major fruit crop is the mango. Shea nuts are collected from wild trees for food or refinement into oils and cosmetics.
Education
[edit]Wa Senior High School (formerly, WASSEC), can be found in the town. WASSEC had somhard s times in the past due to mismanagement and indiscipline which decreased the school's standards. However, the school has recently been recording major improvements in students' general discipline and performance in the West African Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination.[11]
Wa also has St. Francis Xavier Junior Seminary, built in the 1960s.
The University of Business and Integrated Development Studies (UBIDS) is one of the university in Ghana and has it campus is situated in Wa with the following faculties and schools:[12]
- Business Studies
- Integrated Development Studies
- Planning and Land Management
- Education
- School of Law
- School of Social Science and Arts
- Public Policy and Governance
- Information and Communication Technology
Schools in Wa
[edit]- Islamic Senior High School
- Jamiat Al-Hidayyat Al-Islamiat Girls Senior High School
- Northern Star Senior High School
- St. Francis Xavier Minor Seminary
- Wa Senior High School
- Wa Senior High Technical School
- Wa Technical Institute
- T. I. Ahmadiyya Senior High School
- Nusrat Jahan College of Education
- Nursing Training college, Wa
- Wa Technical University (formally Wa Polytechnic)
Culture
[edit]The Damba Festival
[edit]The Damba festival was the main traditional event of Wa.[13] It was typically held in late September to correspond with a harvest in Wa. The highlight of the year was a ceremony in which the Wa-na stepped over a small cow lying on the ground. According to traditional belief, if any part of the Wa-na or the Wa-na clothing touched the cow, the Wa-na would probably die within the year. If on the other hand, the Wa-na stepped over the cow successfully, the Wa-na was guaranteed a successful coming year.
Food and cuisine
[edit]The staple food of Wa is known as sao or Tuo Zaafi in the local dialect, which is often abbreviated TZ or T-Zed in English. Tuo Zaafi means "very hot tuo" in Hausa. It is a thick porridge of corn flour eaten by tearing off a chunk and dipping into a soup, usually of okra.
Other foods common to the Waala people are Kapala (a widely consumed food in Ghana, more commonly known as Fufu), Kuon-tulu (literally translated as "hot water" in Waale, a breakfast food commonly known as Kooko or Hausa Kooko) and Kpogulo (beans powder made into paste, wrapped in Cocoyam or Taro leaves and served with a side of tomato stew).
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "World Gazetteer online". World-gazetteer.com. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007.
- ^ "Campaign on effective handling of food items held in Wa". Graphic Online. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
- ^ "Ghana Districts: A repository of all Local Assemblies in Ghana". GhanaDistricts. Retrieved 23 August 2023.
- ^ Touring Ghana – Upper West Region. touringghana.
- ^ a b Ahmed, A.; Korah, P.; Dongzagla, A.; Nunbogu, A.; Niminga-Beka, R.; Kuusaana, E.; Abubakari, Z. "City profile: Wa, Ghana". Cities. 97 102524. doi:10.1016/j.cities.2019.102524. Retrieved 19 July 2024.
- ^ Ghana Statistical Service, 2000 population and housing census: special report on urban localities, Accra 2002
- ^ "Population of Regions and Districts Report (2010)" (PDF). Ghana Statistical Service. p. 107. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
- ^ Ivor Wilks, Wa and the Wala: Islam and polity in northwestern Ghana (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1988), p. 11-13
- ^ Ofori, Peres. "Sustainable Environmental Sanitation:the role of waste disposal facilities in a nucleated settlement-a case of Wa Municipality". Academia.
- ^ "Klimatafel von Wa / Ghana" (PDF). Baseline climate means (1961-1990) from stations all over the world (in German). Deutscher Wetterdienst. Retrieved 18 October 2016.
- ^ "Secondary Education in Wa". ModernGhana. 31 December 2013. Retrieved 13 June 2015.
- ^ "Wa Campus". Uds Ghana. 23 June 2013. Retrieved 13 June 2015.
- ^ "Damba as a festival and dance form". Arts Ghana. 11 July 2014. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
External links
[edit]
| Municipal (5) |
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| Ordinary (6) |
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| International | |
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| National | |
