Location and Size

The Aowin Municipal is located in the mid-western part of the Western North Region and shares borders with five Districts. It is bordered to the east by Amenfi West Municipal, north=west by Suaman District, south by Jomoro Municipal.  The Municipality is bordered on the north-east by Sefwi Akontombra District and Sefwi Wiawso Municipal. It also shares a common boundary on the west with the Republic of La Cote D’Ivoire.

Aowin Municipal also has a total land area of 246137.13sq.km, representing about 10.12% of the total land area of Western North Region (2432177.41).  Enchi is the Municipal capital.

Relief and Drainage

Generally, the Municipality has undulating surface with more than half of the total area rising above 305 meters above sea level. The highest points are over 366 m above sea level. These highlands are located on the east of Enchi where they have formed a North-North West to South- South West alignment.

The major perennial rivers that drain the Municipality are Rivers Tano and Bia. There are a lot of tributary rivers which drain the Municipality. The well-known tributaries include Disue and Boin which drains north and south of the District respectively. The major rivers and their tributaries have formed a ‘tree-like’ network on the Municipal landscape. Rivers and streams constitute an important source of water for domestic use in most communities in the Municipality.

Climate and Humidity

The Municipality experiences Wet-Semi Equatorial Climatic conditions with an annual average temperature of 26°C.  March and April are the hottest months i.e. before the onset of the early rains. Rainfall pattern in the Municipality is the bimodal type with June and October being the peak seasons. The annual rainfall average ranges between 1700mm and 2100mm. With the display of the rainfall pattern of the Municipality, it is observed that the northern part of the Municipality recorded annual average rainfall which was comparably less than what was in the southern part of the Municipality. This can be attributed to the tick forests located in the southern part of the Municipality. 

Relative humidity is generally high, ranging between 75% and 80% during the wet season and decreasing to about 70% for the rest of the year.

Soil

Acrisols and Ferralsols are the predominant soil types in the district with appreciable dotted quantities of Fluvisols. These soil types have developed as a result of the forest vegetation and the climatic condition of the Municipality. The soils are rich in humus and suitable for crop production such as cocoa, oil palm and food staples. It is noted that the northern and middle belt of the Municipality is covered with Acrisols with dotted spots of Fluvisols whilst the Southern part of the Municipality is covered with Ferralsols.

Geology and Minerals

Geology in the Municipal is constituted by Upper Birimian, Hornblende and Mixed formation of the two types. The Upper Birimian formations, which are younger have been strongly folded with dips often steeper than 60° and usually form hill ranges. Examples of the highlands formed by the Upper Birrimian formations are found around Boin and Yoyo Forest Reserves.

The rock formations in the Municipality are noted for their rich mineral bearing potentials. Various organizations have been prospecting for gold in the Municipality but no major production process has taken place. Small scale gold mining activities, however, are undertaken at Sewum, Atokosue, Abokyia and Nyamkamam.

Vegetation Cover

The Municipal vegetation cover is of two types namely the Tropical rainforest and the semi-deciduous forest. The main vegetation cover is the Tropical rainforest which covers almost the entire Municipality. The moist semi-deciduous forest covers only a small portion on the north-eastern part of the Municipality which is very close to Sefwi-Akontombra and Sefwi-wiawso.

Land cover

The land of the Aowin Municipal is covered by the Built areas, closed forest, moderately closed tree and moderately dense herb/bushes. The built areas are composed of settlements and areas where human activities have led to the development of the area. The closed forest consists of the 8 forest reserves in the District. The moderately closed trees and moderately dense herb/bushes consist of scattered trees of 15 trees per hector and form the farming lands of the Municipality.

Natural Environment

Although the district is endowed with natural resources such as water bodies, rock deposits, forest and gold, the state of these resources are varied. Illegal felling of timber, encroachment of forest through farming activities and pollution of water bodies are some of the challenges confronting the existence of some of the natural resources. Farming and extensive logging for example have contributed to fast depletion of the forest resources in the district.

There are evidences that forest reserves in the Municipality have been greatly encroached upon as a result of farming and logging activities. For example, the Tano-Ehuro Forest reserve, which is about 176.10 square km, has been degraded through farming and logging activities.

The forest reserves in the Municipality are among a few relics in the country. Their benefits in terms of providing natural habitats for fauna and flora of rare species, protection of watersheds, creation of micro-climatic conditions and contribution to the prevention of global warming are critical for human existence and therefore have to be protected to serve future generation.

Dumping of refuse along water bodies is also a major negative effect of human activities on this resource which serves as a source of water for household activities, fish farming and dry season farming. River Disue and Boin are said to be polluted by the settlements through which they flow namely Enchi, Achimfo, Boinso etc.