The Techiman Traditional Council is intensifying its appeal to the government to restart a long-dormant airport project that leaders believe is critical for the economic transformation of the Bono East Region.
During a familiarization visit by the Regional Minister, Francis Owusu Antwi, the Acting President of the Council, Nana Owusu Gyare, expressed deep frustration over the decades of neglect regarding the facility.
Despite the traditional authorities allocating over 600 acres of land for the project years ago, successive administrations have failed to move beyond the initial 2009 test flights at the Twimia-Nkwanta airfield.
The chiefs argued that Techiman’s strategic position in Ghana’s middle belt makes it an ideal aviation hub for both domestic travelers and traders from neighboring countries like Burkina Faso and Ivory Coast. Beyond boosting commerce, the Council highlighted that an airport would facilitate rapid medical evacuations for the Holy Family Hospital and improve regional security by reducing the exposure of long-distance traders to highway robberies.
There is also growing concern that the designated land is increasingly vulnerable to encroachment by local residents the longer the project remains stalled.
In response, Regional Minister Owusu Antwi reaffirmed the government’s commitment to the region’s development, noting that President John Dramani Mahama has already included Techiman in a 24-hour market initiative to upgrade the central commercial hub.
While the Minister did not provide a specific timeline for the airport’s construction, he detailed other upcoming infrastructure projects, including the establishment of a Technical University at Forikrom, a new military barracks to bolster security, and a cement factory aimed at reducing youth unemployment and construction costs.
