Mr Ali Adolf John, Northern Regional Minister has said illicit drug abuse amongst the youth is the most serious security threat confronting the region as it poses risks to public safety, health and the future of the youth.
He said although the region remained relatively peaceful due to strong collaboration amongst security agencies and stakeholders, the growing drug menace was increasingly fuelling criminal activities, especially within the Greater Tamale area.
Mr John said this while addressing the second meeting of the expanded Northern Regional Coordinating Council (NRCC) meeting, held in Tamale.
It was to discuss issues affecting the development of the region and come out with practical solutions to them.
There was a presentation on the status of the 2026/2029 Medium-Term Development Plans (MTDP) of the 16 Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) in the region.
The meeting was attended by the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs) and their Coordinating Directors and Presiding Members, Heads of Department and Units, and development partners including the United Nations Children’s Fund.
Mr John said due to the situation, the Inspector-General of Police had deployed a special Police Task Force to the region to combat the menace through intelligence-led operations and random swoops on known hideouts of drug users and dealers.
He said “The Task Force, supported by the Regional Police Command, is actively fishing out recalcitrant persons involved in the sale and abuse of illicit drugs. These measures are aimed at restoring sanity and reversing the worrying trend.”
Mr John appealed to the MMDCEs, traditional authorities and members of the public to support the security agencies with credible information to help arrest and prosecute persons involved in the drug trade.
He emphasised that “We owe it a responsibility to safeguard the lives of our young people and protect the future of our society.”
He touched on agriculture, saying the region continued to play a leading role in national food production as it cultivated about 652,000 hectares of farmland this year with an estimated output of 3.6 million metric tonnes of major staples.
He said yam production alone accounted for over 1.8 million metric tonnes from 118,529 hectares, which reaffirmed the region’s status as the country’s leading yam-producing area.
On education, Mr John expressed concern about poor academic performance at this year’s West African Senior School Certificate Examinations.
He directed the Regional Director of Education to urgently submit a detailed analysis of the examination results to enable the NRCC to chart strategies to improve the situation.
He highlighted the persistent challenges in water, sanitation and hygiene sector especially during the dry season and assured residents that government had made budgetary provision in the 2026 Appropriation Bill to address water supply challenges in Tamale and Yendi.
He urged the assemblies to take sanitation seriously and enforce the monthly clean-up exercises.
Mr John announced that 1,600 security lamps had been distributed to all the MMDAs in the region to improve street lighting and enhance safety in public spaces.
Alhaji Abukari Inusah, Northern Regional Economic Planning Officer, who made a presentation on the status of the 2026/2029 MTDPs by the MMDAs, said all the 16 MMDAs had completed their MTDPs and presented them to the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC) for approval.
He said the NDPC had made inputs into the MTDPs, which the MMDAs were finalizing for approval.
