On Thursday, May 2, 2024, the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources is set to officially hand over the reconstructed Apiate community to its chiefs and residents.
This comes two years after a destructive explosion struck on January 20, 2022.
The incident which claimed the lives of some thirteen (13) individuals and several injured left the country in shock as a whole community in the Prestea Huni Valley Municipal in the Western region was destroyed in a gas explosion.
In efforts to bring normalcy back to the community, government promised a total of 540 housing units. These houses range from one-bedroom to seven-bedroom homes, catering to the diverse needs of the community.
The event which will be attended by the President and his Vice together with the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources will see the handing over of the first phase of the reconstruction project.
The first phase includes the construction of 124 housing, a school block with sanitary facilities, and the construction of roads within the community.
As part of the reconstruction process, a Health and Safety Committee chaired by the Vice Chancellor of George Paa Grant University of Mines and Technology (UMat), Prof. Richard Amankwaah has been established.
Additionally a comprehensive review of the regulations on explosives, the Minerals and Mining (Explosives) Regulations, 2012 (L.I. 2177) has also been completed and will soon be presented to parliament to help further enhance the local mining industry and continue making it more attractive to investors while ensuring the government vision of making Ghana a mining hub of Africa is realized.
